Ofcom

[jbo5066]

Ofcom is currently carrying out a consultation on proposed changes to strengthen its monitoring regime, which would require Royal Mail to submit an annual view on the financial sustainability of the Universal Service Obligation, and on its progress against efficiency measures. The consultation concludes on 1 November.

[BigSacks]

Ofcom should be telling them that maintaining the 6 day USO was a cornerstone assurance of the privatisation transition.

And that if there’s been a problem maintaining that service over the last few years then perhaps shelling out nearly a billion pounds in dividends, special dividends and managerial bonuses shouldn’t have happened.

[hans solo]

ofcom are not fit for purpose
they only penalise rm
what about all the other couriers and mail processing companys
they were given licences to operate on eventual final mile delivery which is unsustainable for them
so dumping their liabilities on us
whole industry is corrupt and ofcom complicit

[chickenwittle]

Where have ofcom been the last few years while mail has been sat in frames for days on end ? They are useless and not fit for purpose as a regulator.

[Hyrrokkin]

Ofcom are corrupt and completely useless - as they were designed to be in the first place

[jbo5066]

which would require Royal Mail to submit an annual view on the financial sustainability of the Universal Service Obligation

Reading between the lines, is Ofcom asking RM if they can afford to keep the USO going?

[funkflex55]

The continuous leaving of mail and parcels in the office whilst not replacing lost staff and paying out millions to shareholders is scandalous. Our customers are paying for services they are not receiving, it's a trading standards issue as we're miss selling to them. The posties are doing what they can but the company leadership are wrecking the company.

[hans solo]

It’s actually fraud on a massive scale
People pay good money to get their letter delivered not to be left to a local manager to decide what mail is getting left because of not enough staff or hours on certain days
Especially the practise of doing one duty one day and double on their p&l duty next day
It’s to save money and get bonuses
It’s corporate fraud and needs investigated and so does ofcom for allowing this to happen

[Acca Dacca]

It’s actually fraud on a massive scale
People pay good money to get their letter delivered not to be left to a local manager to decide what mail is getting left because of not enough staff or hours on certain days
Especially the practise of doing one duty one day and double on their p&l duty next day
It’s to save money and get bonuses
It’s corporate fraud and needs investigated and so does ofcom for allowing this to happen

All the while telling us there’s too many bodies and need to cut numbers

[wacko74]

Ofcom should be telling them that maintaining the 6 day USO was a cornerstone assurance of the privatisation transition.

I'm sure the general public are crying out for the 6 day USO to be retained so they can receive their Cotton traders and Chums catalogues and Dominoes Pizza leaflets 6 days a week.

The 6 day USO is now a pointless, unnecessary, and hugely inefficient anachronism and any posties insisting it should remain are living in cloud cuckoo land, or just want the job to remain as it was when we were a ''public service'' back in the good old days when we were all finishing hours before our time every day.

Anything that is stamped/franked and dated should of course receive the same level of importance as the current 1st and 2nd class services provide but all the junk mail, unaddressed mail and D2d's which makes up the vast bulk of our mail bag have no need at all to be subject to the same level of regulation that the USO in it's current format demands

[delta-force]

Do you think the USO is sustainable when the mail volume is declining rapidly due to technology? Don't get me wrong, I am all for the USO, but is it viable financially for Royal Mail? I now get over 90 per cent of my mail electronically, and the trend will only accelerate for various reasons. It's cost-effective, reliable, convenient and less time-consuming. Given the current economic situation of the country and the constant threat of the strike, the business has no choice but to adapt to the ever-changing economic environment for its survival. It's in everyone's interest if Royal Mail is more sustainable and profitable. Unless the CWU and the Royal Mail management reach an agreement soon, I am afraid it's just a matter of time before Royal Mail vanishes forever, taking its workforce with it. Ask ourselves if the strike is the only answer to the current impasse we are in with the management. If the strike continues beyond December, Royal Mail not only incurs a huge loss but also present the Royal Mail management opportunity to split Royal Mail from GSL. If that happens, it's game over. There are mainly two reasons for splitting the business. Firstly, it will stop the cross-subsidies between Royal Mail and GLS. The GLS is profitable but is currently dragged down by the loss-making Royal Mail. It makes every sense financially to split the business, which may be beneficial to its management and shareholders, but disastrous for its workforce. Remember, Royal Mail's name recently changed to IDS. Now the split looks more and more inevitable with the ongoing threat of the strike. It may also be necessary for its survival. I am just stating the facts!

[Acca Dacca]

Do you think the USO is sustainable when the mail volume is declining rapidly due to technology? Don't get me wrong, I am all for the USO, but is it viable financially for Royal Mail? I now get over 90 per cent of my mail electronically, and the trend will only accelerate for various reasons. It's cost-effective, reliable, convenient and less time-consuming. Given the current economic situation of the country and the constant threat of the strike, the business has no choice but to adapt to the ever-changing economic environment for its survival. It's in everyone's interest if Royal Mail is more sustainable and profitable. Unless the CWU and the Royal Mail management reach an agreement soon, I am afraid it's just a matter of time before Royal Mail vanishes forever, taking its workforce with it. Ask ourselves if the strike is the only answer to the current impasse we are in with the management. If the strike continues beyond December, Royal Mail not only incurs a huge loss but also present the Royal Mail management opportunity to split Royal Mail from GSL. If that happens, it's game over. There are mainly two reasons for splitting the business. Firstly, it will stop the cross-subsidies between Royal Mail and GLS. The GLS is profitable but is currently dragged down by the loss-making Royal Mail. It makes every sense financially to split the business, which may be beneficial to its management and shareholders, but disastrous for its workforce. Remember, Royal Mail's name recently changed to IDS. Now the split looks more and more inevitable with the ongoing threat of the strike. It may also be necessary for its survival. I am just stating the facts!

You are stating your opinion

[sindba]

Unless the CWU and the Royal Mail management reach an agreement soon, I am afraid it's just a matter of time before Royal Mail vanishes forever, taking its workforce with it.

Well yes, obviously. But so what?

Royal Mail aren't interested in talking about modernisation. They just want to destroy workers pay, rights, protections, terms and conditions.

If they get their way, we'll be little better off than your average Amazon driver. So there's literally nothing to lose by striking.

[Zicomurphy]

Do you think the USO is sustainable when the mail volume is declining rapidly due to technology? Don't get me wrong, I am all for the USO, but is it viable financially for Royal Mail? I now get over 90 per cent of my mail electronically, and the trend will only accelerate for various reasons. It's cost-effective, reliable, convenient and less time-consuming. Given the current economic situation of the country and the constant threat of the strike, the business has no choice but to adapt to the ever-changing economic environment for its survival. It's in everyone's interest if Royal Mail is more sustainable and profitable. Unless the CWU and the Royal Mail management reach an agreement soon, I am afraid it's just a matter of time before Royal Mail vanishes forever, taking its workforce with it. Ask ourselves if the strike is the only answer to the current impasse we are in with the management. If the strike continues beyond December, Royal Mail not only incurs a huge loss but also present the Royal Mail management opportunity to split Royal Mail from GSL. If that happens, it's game over. There are mainly two reasons for splitting the business. Firstly, it will stop the cross-subsidies between Royal Mail and GLS. The GLS is profitable but is currently dragged down by the loss-making Royal Mail. It makes every sense financially to split the business, which may be beneficial to its management and shareholders, but disastrous for its workforce. Remember, Royal Mail's name recently changed to IDS. Now the split looks more and more inevitable with the ongoing threat of the strike. It may also be necessary for its survival. I am just stating the facts!

But the strike isn’t about the USO. A lot of us see the sense in a review of the USO. Simon Thompson himself has said in time he would like a reduction to a 3 days a week delivery of letters.

The question is, if the company really is losing £1.2M a day, why isn’t he pushing for that to happen straight away or in the very near future? Why is his answer to attack our terms and conditions, impose a pay increase 8% below the rate of inflation and impose changes that will make our working life intolerable?

In my opinion he has no interest in a reduction in the USO right now because it would take away his justification for his actions. His master plan is to attack our pay and terms and conditions first and THEN push for a reduction in the USO because that is what will maximise profits. Profits that will be paid out in dividends and bonuses to those at the top and not used to improve our terms and conditions even though the business will be making a large profit again.

[priority102]

I find it incredible that the CWU (and posties) are not reporting the USO failures DAILY to OFCOM. I thought it was a legal requirement of the USO to deliver to each address 6 days a week.

I remember businesses having to sign an annual letter (issued by RM) to authorise RM to hold their mail on Saturday's if they were shut!

THAT'S how stringent it was.