DPR, Robin and RM26

[menditsa]

DPR:

When I first came back to RM 4.5 years ago as an agency DPR Driver we started at 8am / 9am and covered 4 walks which we did every day (Same Area)
We worked with the Posties who were delivering mail and would take 1pm Specials off them to help them out, as we were doing the same 4 walks day in day out we knew where to park, codes for gates / flats etc etc.
Never used the app for directions as we scanned in what we were taking and knew where we going and could rearrange any mishaps the "routing decided"

Our DO at the time had a severe staff shortage and my LM asked would I help out delivering mail when needed and covering box collections, not a problem did it and got to know every walk in that section like the back of my hand. Everything worked with no hiccups.

After 1.5 years moved to RM on new contract @ 30 hours still doing the same as what I did on agency.

Come March 2025 I got moved to a 2pm start 8pm finish with a new PCOM.
I was fully expecting to be put on the area I knew very well, didn't happen, I'm now moved about every day, every week in area's I don't know at all.
I'm at the mercy of satnav now as I don't spend enough time on routes to learn them well and since the move to TomTom it's like a lunatic on Colombian Marching Powder.

Robin:

It's like a Facebook / Linkedin masturbation tool for mangers to jerk off to their posts about their "Teams" and has zero relevance to the job at hand. I've never used it really but the last week I've watched it like a hawk and every single post with a valid point from a Postie has gone by without a single reply from these "Managers". It's all blah blah and I'd love to know what do these £40K plus a year "Managers" do that actually helps the company ?
Personally I'd say to the new owner remove 78% of useless managers whose KPI's and false figures do nothing for the company but give them a nice yearly bonus and put it back into the front-line staff who ACTUALLY work for RM.

RM26 ODM

Never going to work in a million years.
My simple solution, use Parcelforce for 15KG plus parcels and Royal Mail for MAIL and items under 15kg.

Side Note:

Many of the new 30 hour contracts (Post 2025) and Angard are not in the Union and are treated so bad, I've tried to advise a few but they are scared shitless of saying anything as if they do they are punished by having overtime removed or shifts removed for speaking up and saying the 7 hours route you have given me on a 6 hour shift is not doable.
They end running around like headless chickens "Doorstepping" just to try to meet the PCOM's fantasy figures.
NO seat belt, No turning van off, safe place "Enclosed Porch" dump and run, no P739 EVER.

I do the job by the book and if those 105 deliveries you gave me with 150 parcels 35 do not get delivered because of your false departure times that on you MR PCOM not me.

[tramssirhc]

DPR:

When I first came back to RM 4.5 years ago as an agency DPR Driver we started at 8am / 9am and covered 4 walks which we did every day (Same Area)
We worked with the Posties who were delivering mail and would take 1pm Specials off them to help them out, as we were doing the same 4 walks day in day out we knew where to park, codes for gates / flats etc etc.
Never used the app for directions as we scanned in what we were taking and knew where we going and could rearrange any mishaps the "routing decided"

Our DO at the time had a severe staff shortage and my LM asked would I help out delivering mail when needed and covering box collections, not a problem did it and got to know every walk in that section like the back of my hand. Everything worked with no hiccups.

After 1.5 years moved to RM on new contract @ 30 hours still doing the same as what I did on agency.

Come March 2025 I got moved to a 2pm start 8pm finish with a new PCOM.
I was fully expecting to be put on the area I knew very well, didn't happen, I'm now moved about every day, every week in area's I don't know at all.
I'm at the mercy of satnav now as I don't spend enough time on routes to learn them well and since the move to TomTom it's like a lunatic on Colombian Marching Powder.

Robin:

It's like a Facebook / Linkedin masturbation tool for mangers to jerk off to their posts about their "Teams" and has zero relevance to the job at hand. I've never used it really but the last week I've watched it like a hawk and every single post with a valid point from a Postie has gone by without a single reply from these "Managers". It's all blah blah and I'd love to know what do these £40K plus a year "Managers" do that actually helps the company ?
Personally I'd say to the new owner remove 78% of useless managers whose KPI's and false figures do nothing for the company but give them a nice yearly bonus and put it back into the front-line staff who ACTUALLY work for RM.

RM26 ODM

Never going to work in a million years.
My simple solution, use Parcelforce for 15KG plus parcels and Royal Mail for MAIL and items under 15kg.

Side Note:

Many of the new 30 hour contracts (Post 2025) and Angard are not in the Union and are treated so bad, I've tried to advise a few but they are scared shitless of saying anything as if they do they are punished by having overtime removed or shifts removed for speaking up and saying the 7 hours route you have given me on a 6 hour shift is not doable.
They end running around like headless chickens "Doorstepping" just to try to meet the PCOM's fantasy figures.
NO seat belt, No turning van off, safe place "Enclosed Porch" dump and run, no P739 EVER.

I do the job by the book and if those 105 deliveries you gave me with 150 parcels 35 do not get delivered because of your false departure times that on you MR PCOM not me.

All easily sorted with a good old fashioned trade union, led by militant trade unionists who organise themselves and change the way it is. That starts with the workers. Don't expect the CWU to do it because that's not what the CWU wants to do. The power to change the way it is lies with you all getting together and putting a stop to it.

[Agencyoap]

My story (along with 20-30 others in my CDO) is almost identical
The satnav is dangerous, and as it takes you down roads that don’t exist, does U-turns on duel carriageways et cetera cannot be right
The place is toxic, immoral, corrupt and just wrong
But it’s a buyers market as there are so few jobs about

[TopperGas]

My story (along with 20-30 others in my CDO) is almost identical
The satnav is dangerous, and as it takes you down roads that don’t exist, does U-turns on duel carriageways et cetera cannot be right
The place is toxic, immoral, corrupt and just wrong
But it’s a buyers market as there are so few jobs about

The SatNav doesn't drive the van? The only issue I find v Google Maps is for some strange reason it won't reroute if you decide you know a more direct quicker route.

As far as Robin I don't understand the endless posts about vehicle checks and site safety checks when it's just something every DO regular does.

[lincolnshirepostie]

I've had the TomTom system try to take me up through pavements or private driveways as "roads" before, Maps and Waze doesn't do this, so I have no idea why their system does so. It's dangerous if you don't know the area (which nowadays is pretty common to be swapped about willy nilly) and just causes a whole lot of stress and headache if you don't know where you're going

Edit: Also to add about Robin, I've been looking at it this morning, it feels and seems more like a propaganda machine to give anyone who gives it a quick glance that Royal Mail 'cares' - all show and no go, because if you dig deeper, people's queries about the job just go completely ignored and unanswered whereas posts that celebrate RM wins get rocketed up with likes, maybe even from bots.

[Cofipostie1]

As far as robin dont look at it myself but would love a shortcut just to get to the payslips as i can with uniform ordering.

[ted_e_bear]

As far as robin dont look at it myself but would love a shortcut just to get to the payslips as i can with uniform ordering.

Try this

https://flpnwc-p59gi3nlh3.dispatcher.eu ... ystubsList

[Agencyoap]

My story (along with 20-30 others in my CDO) is almost identical
The satnav is dangerous, and as it takes you down roads that don’t exist, does U-turns on duel carriageways et cetera cannot be right
The place is toxic, immoral, corrupt and just wrong
But it’s a buyers market as there are so few jobs about

The SatNav doesn't drive the van? The only issue I find v Google Maps is for some strange reason it won't reroute if you decide you know a more direct quicker route.

As far as Robin I don't understand the endless posts about vehicle checks and site safety checks when it's just something every DO regular does.

??
We drive the van to the route it works out in drop order - and the route it tells us can include U-turns at major junctions, stopping on dual carriage ways, driving through allotments, turning right at no right turn junctions, drop 24 being one address, drop 57 being the house next door
I know we drive the vans but It’s a work tool, not a driving aid and as such it should be fit for purpose and dangerous

[TopperGas]

My story (along with 20-30 others in my CDO) is almost identical
The satnav is dangerous, and as it takes you down roads that don’t exist, does U-turns on duel carriageways et cetera cannot be right
The place is toxic, immoral, corrupt and just wrong
But it’s a buyers market as there are so few jobs about

The SatNav doesn't drive the van? The only issue I find v Google Maps is for some strange reason it won't reroute if you decide you know a more direct quicker route.

As far as Robin I don't understand the endless posts about vehicle checks and site safety checks when it's just something every DO regular does.

??
We drive the van to the route it works out in drop order - and the route it tells us can include U-turns at major junctions, stopping on dual carriage ways, driving through allotments, turning right at no right turn junctions, drop 24 being one address, drop 57 being the house next door
I know we drive the vans but It’s a work tool, not a driving aid and as such it should be fit for purpose and dangerous

I've delivered well over 500 parcels this week and probably driven a similar number of miles without any major issues, apart from the previously mentioned rerouting issues, unless you're just passed your driving test or moved to the UK I find it hard to believe RON causes any major issues. It gets the odd thing wrong but is a damn sight better than the system RM was using just a few years ago which just took you to the road the property was on and you then had to spend time trying to find the property.

[Hitcher]

Even if you don't know the area it's pretty easy to look at the map and spot 'other side of the road' drops and move them around before confirming your route.

[Agencyoap]

My story (along with 20-30 others in my CDO) is almost identical
The satnav is dangerous, and as it takes you down roads that don’t exist, does U-turns on duel carriageways et cetera cannot be right
The place is toxic, immoral, corrupt and just wrong
But it’s a buyers market as there are so few jobs about

The SatNav doesn't drive the van? The only issue I find v Google Maps is for some strange reason it won't reroute if you decide you know a more direct quicker route.

As far as Robin I don't understand the endless posts about vehicle checks and site safety checks when it's just something every DO regular does.

??
We drive the van to the route it works out in drop order - and the route it tells us can include U-turns at major junctions, stopping on dual carriage ways, driving through allotments, turning right at no right turn junctions, drop 24 being one address, drop 57 being the house next door
I know we drive the vans but It’s a work tool, not a driving aid and as such it should be fit for purpose and dangerous

I've delivered well over 500 parcels this week and probably driven a similar number of miles without any major issues, apart from the previously mentioned rerouting issues, unless you're just passed your driving test or moved to the UK I find it hard to believe RON causes any major issues. It gets the odd thing wrong but is a damn sight better than the system RM was using just a few years ago which just took you to the road the property was on and you then had to spend time trying to find the property.

This is not a pissing contest - you’re obviously a lot better at the job than me
It’s a discussion about the work tool being unfit for purpose
We have 28 DPR duties each with A & B sections - so on busy days there might be 50+ DP drivers delivering 120+ parcels each
We don’t get left on duties long enough to familiarise ourselves with what side of the road are Odds numbers, what roads have no parking spaces, what roads are have no turning circles etc
We don’t scan our own work in
On routes that I’m familiar with I can pre plan and change the shite routing by checking the map
But the simple fact is we shouldn’t have to - we are under instruction that we MUST follow the PDA - so it should be safe and correct
It should not send me up a loop doing drops on the opposite side of the road, then coming back have drops on the upside that I’d just driven
It should not be directing you to cross the flow of traffic when you don’t need to - it’s basic highway safety
Last week though on unfamiliar routes I was directed down alleys to narrow for the van, directed to do U-turns on dual carriageways, directed to stop on roundabouts, directed up 1 way streets the wrong way, directed to go on roads that had been shut for over 8 years, directed to drive through an allotment, directed to drive through a petrol station, directed to stop on a 40mph dual carriage way….

[TopperGas]

What happened when you reported all these issues to management?

[Clappedoutpostie]

It sounds like your route manager isn’t being updated as it should be.

[Mr Rush]

we are under instruction that we MUST follow the PDA

If there's one thing worse than being micromanaged by a manager it's being micromanaged by a machine. Norman Candy was right - the PDA is by far the most destructive change to the job.

[Hitcher]

It sounds like your route manager isn’t being updated as it should be.

How does that even happen?