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Post pile at the Kilburn depot |
POST PILES CUTS HIT DEPOTS
Stretched delivery offices struggle with new workloads
MOUNTAINS of undelivered letters are piling up in delivery offices because of staff cuts, postal workers warned yesterday (Wednesday).
The New Journal has seen photos taken from inside the Kilburn depot in Coventry Close which show a heap of untouched mail.
Some of the post contains letters sent more than a week ago.
The workload has got so bad in Kilburn that workers walked out on Sunday and Monday following advice from their health and safety representatives.
They were told by officials that the boxes of unsorted post which are blocking fire escapes were in contravention of the Workplace Health, Safety and Welfare Regulations 1992.
Postal workers say they have been given an
impossible job of working longer rounds – some routes have been merged – in less time.
The order has gone out that all rounds must be complete by 1pm, much earlier than the previous deadline of 2.18pm.
Unable to get round to everybody’s letterboxes, mail has been left sitting in the sorting offices and delivery delayed.
The situation in Kilburn is thought to mirror backlogs building in post depots across Camden.
Tony Davis, regional rep for Commercial Workers Union (CWU), said: “There are so many items stored up that it has become an environmental issue.
“In Kilburn, we believed it was in breach of health and safety standards. Physically, you can’t carry out the work that comes in each day.
“It was in the fire escapes. Workers can’t even get to their bays. The place was unsafe. Staff walked out saying we’re not coming down until it’s safe.”
He added: “On Monday, management told them they couldn’t come back to work unless they signed a new contract. It would have meant they could pick which days staff could come in. Staff refused.
“On Tuesday, the lads wanted to go into work regardless – they said if you don’t pay us we’ll come in anyway. Management decided they had to pay them – we called their bluff.”
Mr Davis was speaking to the New Journal at an official picket line outside Hampstead delivery office yesterday morning. Around 40 postal workers went on strike in the row with management over jobs and pay.
Retired physician and poet Nobert Hitschhorn, who lives in Greencroft Gardens, West Hampstead, said: “There could be love letters, cheques for businesses and all sorts not getting through. The trouble is, if you send a letter you have no idea if it is being delivered.”
Royal Mail insist the rise of the internet means mail volume has fallen by ten per cent and cut backs to deliveries and sorting staff numbers are unavoidable.
It says the backlog of post is under control and that senders should not stop using the service while strike action continues.
But Hampstead CWU rep John Coater said: “This is not about pay – it’s about service to the customer. I’ve been working here for 23 years and I’ve got up at 4am all my life. I’ve been happy to do it. But these days no one really wants to come to work.”
Hampstead postman Paul Lindon was given a verbal warning for not completing his round – he has recently returned from work following a heart scare.
He said: “That put the fear into me. I’ve been here for 23 years. I don’t need this type of stress.”
Mr Davis said 60 staff across his north London area had gone sick with stress-related problems.
Paul Tolhurst, Royal Mail’s operations director, said: “We urge the CWU to call off its plans for strike action. More CWU strike action will do nothing but damage Royal Mail’s ability to protect the Universal Service and preserve as many jobs as possible at a time when mail volumes are falling by almost 10 per cent year on year.” |
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