The postal strike [Merged]

[Lord Bracknell]

Ok, but it doesn't receive any public money, and nor should it.

The Royal Mail SHOULD get public money.

It costs a lot more than 24 pence to collect a letter from a letter box in rural Northern Ireland and deliver it to an address in rural Sussex. But that is all the customer has to pay.

The new competitors for bulk mailing aren't in the least bit interested in taking on the whole of Royal Mail's business. But their creaming off of the lucrative city centre to city centre business is holding down prices and forcing Royal Mail to plough any profits it can scrape together into keeping the unprofitable bits of the business going. The competitors just wouldn't bother.

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

All Civil servants have been moved onto an average wage plan.

No they haven't!

My brother works for the Civil Service and he is still on his final salary scheme.

 

[DIFFBROOK]

All Civil servants have been moved onto an average wage plan.

Being a Civil Servant that is not true. Existing staff continue with final salary scheme, new starters will be on the average scheme. To be honest, what is the fuss about public servants having a final salary scheme. If you pay piss poor wages, you pay out piss poor pensions. Put it this way the average public servant pension payout is £4,000 a year. Hardly breaking the public purse is it.

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

The Royal Mail SHOULD get public money.

It costs a lot more than 24 pence to collect a letter from a letter box in rural Northern Ireland and deliver it to an address in rural Sussex. But that is all the customer has to pay.

The new competitors for bulk mailing aren't in the least bit interested in taking on the whole of Royal Mail's business. But their creaming off of the lucrative city centre to city centre business is holding down prices and forcing Royal Mail to plough any profits it can scrape together into keeping the unprofitable bits of the business going. The competitors just wouldn't bother.

Thankyou Lord B. The reason why the Post Office/Royal Mail was able to do this in the past was because we had a monoply, which enabled us to make money on the profitbale city mail which subsidised the un-profitbale rural mail.
Everyone was happy, except our rivals of course.

 

[Hatterlovesbrighton]

Being a Civil Servant that is not true. Existing staff continue with final salary scheme, new starters will be on the average scheme. To be honest, what is the fuss about public servants having a final salary scheme. If you pay piss poor wages, you pay out piss poor pensions. Put it this way the average public servant pension payout is £4,000 a year. Hardly breaking the public purse is it.

Suits me, i'm a civil servant too. I was sure it switched a while back, but very happy to be wrong.

 

[pasty]

Thankyou Lord B. The reason why the Post Office/Royal Mail was able to do this in the past was because we had a monoply, which enabled us to make money on the profitbale city mail which subsidised the un-profitbale rural mail.
Everyone was happy, except our rivals of course.

Oh, well thats alright then.

 

[JBizzleBeard]

I'm with the posties on this one. I too can wait for my bills and whatever other 'important' stuff I might have coming. Some people on here need to take their heads outta their arses and come out for some air.

 

[eastlondonseagull]

Where are all these 'alternative' postal services that are supposedly springing up in competition? Because I'd love to try one out.

The Royal Mail provides a poor service these days, far worse than the service we used to get. Where's the 'first' post gone? Why do you now have to pay a small fortune to receive your post on time? Breakfast deliveries used to be a normal part of the service, surely? And why does so much post go missing these days?

Then again, my milkman delivers mid-morning these days, too. What's the fcking point in that? All these services are going down the pan


.

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

Where are all these 'alternative' postal services that are supposedly springing up in competition? Because I'd love to try one out.

The Royal Mail provides a poor service these days, far worse than the service we used to get. Where's the 'first' post gone? Why do you now have to pay a small fortune to receive your post on time? Breakfast deliveries used to be a normal part of the service, surely? And why does so much post go missing these days?

Then again, my milkman delivers mid-morning these days, too. What's the fcking point in that? All these services are going down the pan


.

Royal Mail provides a poorer service because gradually it's monoply has been opened up to competition. Competition who have unfairly been allowed to take away the most profitable part of the business. This means Royal Mail has to make cutbacks, and things like early morning deliveries are one of those cutbacks.

 

[Grendel]

This is a postperson's wage excluding allowances and overtime.

I am assuming the first two brackets are for 16-18 year olds.

Length of service Pay
£215.95
£251.94
First 6 months £327.43
Next 6 months £343.67
£359.92

For a 40 hour week this equates to £8.99 per hour before tax.

It equates to £18,700 a year - more than I earn, and more than I live quite happily on. And I don't get allowances or overtime either. If I decided to go on strike I'd lose my job, yet for someone providing a public service it's perfectly acceptable. They can f*** themselves as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Where are all these 'alternative' postal services that are supposedly springing up in competition? Because I'd love to try one out.

They are out there driving white vans to your door, sometime in mid afternoon.

I suspect that the alternative service that you'd like to try isn't interested in your custom. But who cares? They are running an "efficient" white van service.

 

[Hatterlovesbrighton]

One of the biggest problems for the RM is surely e-mail. Be interesting to see what volumes of post are like compared to 10 and 20 years ago. Suppose Internet shopping will have had some effect, but it must be a lot less. That combined with increased automation must make a posties life a troubled one.

I'm not at all envious of their postion, I just don't thinking striking is the right way to get the best result.

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

It equates to £18,700 a year - more than I earn, and more than I live quite happily on. And I don't get allowances or overtime either. If I decided to go on strike I'd lose my job, yet for someone providing a public service it's perfectly acceptable. They can f*** themselves as far as I'm concerned.

Where do you live then?

Why do you lose your job if you strike? is it because you haven't got a union sticking up for your rights?

It is not perfectly acceptable for me or my colleagues to go on strike, we haven't taken the decsision lightly.

Just off to f*** myself.

 

[Stat Brother]

If your getting your post now, at around 1pm. Come next week, when the strike is over, you will be getting your post nearer 3pm, as our hours have changed, with us all starting 1 & 1/2 hours later.
This is because RM vehicles can no longer travel above 56mph!!!!!!.
Doesn't seem to creditable to me, but it does mean everyone can lose their early shift allowance.
Luckily the Union managed to get a deal on the allowance, but not our hours.

 

[Starry]

Well, i can understand that!!

Our postie doesnt knock on the door when he's delivering a parcel - he jsut puts the red card through!! He put a red card through for a recorded delivery (when we were all downstairs near the door) and also put a red card through for an amazon one - when it could go through the letterbox! (I tried it!) Is it worth complianing about - or will it just be ignored?

They shouldn't wasn't ignor you. our previous postie did the same and I went down to the sorting office each time and complained, when they told me if I could prove without doubt he was doing this they would take action. So I ordered and then sat around waiting with a camera and caught him out. As did several others in the village.

He was removed from our route and was stuck doing something behind the scenes. He has been replaced by the laziest, slowest person I have encountered yet though. We get our mail just as I return from getting the kids from school so half three, four o'clock. And he complains every day about how far off the 'main' road the house is. Oh well.

 

[British Bulldog]

It equates to £18,700 a year - more than I earn, and more than I live quite happily on. And I don't get allowances or overtime either. If I decided to go on strike I'd lose my job, yet for someone providing a public service it's perfectly acceptable. They can f*** themselves as far as I'm concerned.

If your happy to sell yourself short for shit conditions thats up to you but the word MUG springs to mind. The posties have my backing as they have done from the start and if my mail gets delayed because of their strike action then i'm prepared to put up with it.

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

If your getting your post now, at around 1pm. Come next week, when the strike is over, you will be getting your post nearer 3pm, as our hours have changed, with us all starting 1 & 1/2 hours later.
This is because RM vehicles can no longer travel above 56mph!!!!!!.
Doesn't seem to creditable to me, but it does mean everyone can lose their early shift allowance.
Luckily the Union managed to get a deal on the allowance, but not our hours.

It's bullshit Stat Brother. Sixty percent of mail for delivery offices is ready to leave mail centres at midnight.
So why on earth do they have to move delivery start times later.
Why not send the mail to the DO when it is ready?

 

[Southover Street Seagull]

If your happy to sell yourself short for shit conditions thats up to you but the word MUG springs to mind. The posties have my backing as they have done from the start and if my mail gets delayed because of their strike action then i'm prepared to put up with it.

Thankyou mate. your support is appreciated.

 

[Stat Brother]

It's bullshit Stat Brother. Sixty percent of mail for delivery offices is ready to leave mail centres at midnight.
So why on earth do they have to move delivery start times later.
Why not send the mail to the DO when it is ready?

Yeah I know, maybe my sarcasm didn't come across well.

 

[The Merry Prankster]

I wish all the posties good luck. Esp. the ones on here who have taken time to explain the issues.