The Future: Saturday 25th Nov 2023

[theargyspy]

It's Saturday 25th Nov 2023 around 4:30pm, I've been on delivery since around 10:15am so just over 6 hrs, I should have finished half an hour ago but my COM informed me this morning that due to heavier than expected traffic that he was 'asking me' to flex up by half an hour. It has hardly stopped raining since I started and I'm soaked to the skin. It is dark and I'm not familiar with the area. I've been provided with a torch, but no batteries (was told I have to buy these myself) so I'm struggling to see some of the house numbers. The PDA has given up the ghost being so wet so I'm trying to write down the tracking numbers as I deliver them but due to the rain my pen has stopped working too. I was trying to take photos on my mobile phone but it's raining so hard that I dare not use it. I have just knocked on a customer’s door to pick up a customer collection but they said it wasn't ready and could I come back later, I said No. I’m just trying to get over a heavy cold so unable to go at a decent pace, the last couple of weeks of bad weather are taking their toll on me but can’t go sick because I had a four day absence around eight months ago when I twisted my ankle on delivery. I have three packets left that were attempted yesterday but they weren’t in so I have to re-deliver today, unfortunately due to the rain one of the address labels has got so damp the address has become unreadable, earlier, before the PDA died I was struggling to scan tracked so was putting them in manually, it was hard though because my hands were so cold. Because my hands are frozen I'm using the otherwise useless PDA to knock on the doors. A close call with a dog roaming around the street with no owner, I had to wait in someone’s garden until it got bored and run off. It is completely dark now and I'm struggling to get anyone to answer when I have packets, customers are not keen to open the door in the dark, the conversation is always the same "KNOCK, KNOCK" "who is it?" " the Postman, I have a packet for you!" nothing happens for a few minutes, lots of whispering behind the door, then see someone looking out of the living room window, then after some time the security chain is removed and a little old lady looks out of the crack of the door before taking the packet. Then onto the next house. The rain coming down harder now which is a blessing because a little earlier there was a couple of dodgy looking guys in hoodies who were following me, I was keeping my trolly as close to me as possible. My shoes are full of water due to the constant rain so not bothering avoiding the puddles, my feet couldn’t get any wetter. I still have around 100 calls left but I'm going to stop delivering the mail and just do the last tracked as instructed by my COM and I'm going to call it a day. I can’t write out any cards either because of my useless pen and my P739 cards are soaking wet so I hope they are all in and answer the door. I would have called my manager but he finished and went home at 10am this morning, I saw him getting in his car to leave as I pulled out of the yard to go out on delivery. Obviously my union rep wasn't in today either as he doesn't work Saturdays. It’s going to take me around 40 mins to drive back through the Saturday pre-Christmas traffic, a journey of 2 miles, so anticipate getting back to the office around 5:15pm, ten mins to pouch off and hopefully I can be leaving to clock off around 5:30pm, So I should be home around 6:15pm. I'm lucky I only live around 3 miles away and shouldn't take me too long in this traffic. Looking forward to my Sunday off tomorrow, it’s been a long week, Monday will soon be here again and expect a grilling off my COM as to why I brought back the hundred calls.

[mightyowler]

Hopefully the Mail centre workers consider this when voting. Solidarity an all that

[norris9]

If this happens Royal Mail won't have a workforce.

They aren't going to find over 100,000 people to walk 15 miles+ a day, 5 days a week, under massive pressure, for what isn't much above minimum wage.

For a start it looks like they will be losing any staff that need to pick up their kids from school.

[FilthyBloke]

It's Saturday 25th Nov 2023 around 4:30pm, I've been on delivery since around 10:15am so just over 6 hrs, I should have finished half an hour ago but my COM informed me this morning that due to heavier than expected traffic that he was 'asking me' to flex up by half an hour. It has hardly stopped raining since I started and I'm soaked to the skin. It is dark and I'm not familiar with the area. I've been provided with a torch, but no batteries (was told I have to buy these myself) so I'm struggling to see some of the house numbers. The PDA has given up the ghost being so wet so I'm trying to write down the tracking numbers as I deliver them but due to the rain my pen has stopped working too. I was trying to take photos on my mobile phone but it's raining so hard that I dare not use it. I have just knocked on a customer’s door to pick up a customer collection but they said it wasn't ready and could I come back later, I said No. I’m just trying to get over a heavy cold so unable to go at a decent pace, the last couple of weeks of bad weather are taking their toll on me but can’t go sick because I had a four day absence around eight months ago when I twisted my ankle on delivery. I have three packets left that were attempted yesterday but they weren’t in so I have to re-deliver today, unfortunately due to the rain one of the address labels has got so damp the address has become unreadable, earlier, before the PDA died I was struggling to scan tracked so was putting them in manually, it was hard though because my hands were so cold. Because my hands are frozen I'm using the otherwise useless PDA to knock on the doors. A close call with a dog roaming around the street with no owner, I had to wait in someone’s garden until it got bored and run off. It is completely dark now and I'm struggling to get anyone to answer when I have packets, customers are not keen to open the door in the dark, the conversation is always the same "KNOCK, KNOCK" "who is it?" " the Postman, I have a packet for you!" nothing happens for a few minutes, lots of whispering behind the door, then see someone looking out of the living room window, then after some time the security chain is removed and a little old lady looks out of the crack of the door before taking the packet. Then onto the next house. The rain coming down harder now which is a blessing because a little earlier there was a couple of dodgy looking guys in hoodies who were following me, I was keeping my trolly as close to me as possible. My shoes are full of water due to the constant rain so not bothering avoiding the puddles, my feet couldn’t get any wetter. I still have around 100 calls left but I'm going to stop delivering the mail and just do the last tracked as instructed by my COM and I'm going to call it a day. I can’t write out any cards either because of my useless pen and my P739 cards are soaking wet so I hope they are all in and answer the door. I would have called my manager but he finished and went home at 10am this morning, I saw him getting in his car to leave as I pulled out of the yard to go out on delivery. Obviously my union rep wasn't in today either as he doesn't work Saturdays. It’s going to take me around 40 mins to drive back through the Saturday pre-Christmas traffic, a journey of 2 miles, so anticipate getting back to the office around 5:15pm, ten mins to pouch off and hopefully I can be leaving to clock off around 5:30pm, So I should be home around 6:15pm. I'm lucky I only live around 3 miles away and shouldn't take me too long in this traffic. Looking forward to my Sunday off tomorrow, it’s been a long week, Monday will soon be here again and expect a grilling off my COM as to why I brought back the hundred calls.

Sounds bleak….
But if you twisted your ankle at work and it’s work related it shouldn’t (unless the policy has changed) be added on to your sick allowance (if it’s a pot hole or whatever make sure you take a photo and inform your manager right away), and remember if it happened in someone’s driveway in the dark you could actually go down the route of legal action.
Don’t use your phone for any parcel/letter issues.
If your place of work are not providing you with proper equipment for you to perform your job (batteries for torch or padlock for trolley) then don’t do it. Health and safety is protected.
As for the dog roaming the street, take a photo, and then leave that entire street as inaccessible. You are just following protocol after all….
And if you can’t get hold of the manager (and only use the pda to call the office, don’t use your own phone) then again you can use that as evidence to back you up. PDA call history will show you tried calling several times and left numerous messages.

But you’re right…. There could be some really lousy shifts ahead…

[broughts]

They can’t ask u to flex up on a Saturday because it has to be paid back in the same week unless that changes

[theargyspy]

They can’t ask u to flex up on a Saturday because it has to be paid back in the same week unless that changes

don't think so. in the blurb somewhere it states paid back with next 10 days as far as I remember

[theargyspy]

Everything in my original post has happened to me at one time or another on delivery, including being placed on a stage for twisting my ankle whilst on delivery, this was after having a clean sick record for two years previously

[CRIBMAD]

It's Saturday 25th Nov 2023 around 4:30pm, I've been on delivery since around 10:15am so just over 6 hrs, I should have finished half an hour ago but my COM informed me this morning that due to heavier than expected traffic that he was 'asking me' to flex up by half an hour. It has hardly stopped raining since I started and I'm soaked to the skin. It is dark and I'm not familiar with the area. I've been provided with a torch, but no batteries (was told I have to buy these myself) so I'm struggling to see some of the house numbers. The PDA has given up the ghost being so wet so I'm trying to write down the tracking numbers as I deliver them but due to the rain my pen has stopped working too. I was trying to take photos on my mobile phone but it's raining so hard that I dare not use it. I have just knocked on a customer’s door to pick up a customer collection but they said it wasn't ready and could I come back later, I said No. I’m just trying to get over a heavy cold so unable to go at a decent pace, the last couple of weeks of bad weather are taking their toll on me but can’t go sick because I had a four day absence around eight months ago when I twisted my ankle on delivery. I have three packets left that were attempted yesterday but they weren’t in so I have to re-deliver today, unfortunately due to the rain one of the address labels has got so damp the address has become unreadable, earlier, before the PDA died I was struggling to scan tracked so was putting them in manually, it was hard though because my hands were so cold. Because my hands are frozen I'm using the otherwise useless PDA to knock on the doors. A close call with a dog roaming around the street with no owner, I had to wait in someone’s garden until it got bored and run off. It is completely dark now and I'm struggling to get anyone to answer when I have packets, customers are not keen to open the door in the dark, the conversation is always the same "KNOCK, KNOCK" "who is it?" " the Postman, I have a packet for you!" nothing happens for a few minutes, lots of whispering behind the door, then see someone looking out of the living room window, then after some time the security chain is removed and a little old lady looks out of the crack of the door before taking the packet. Then onto the next house. The rain coming down harder now which is a blessing because a little earlier there was a couple of dodgy looking guys in hoodies who were following me, I was keeping my trolly as close to me as possible. My shoes are full of water due to the constant rain so not bothering avoiding the puddles, my feet couldn’t get any wetter. I still have around 100 calls left but I'm going to stop delivering the mail and just do the last tracked as instructed by my COM and I'm going to call it a day. I can’t write out any cards either because of my useless pen and my P739 cards are soaking wet so I hope they are all in and answer the door. I would have called my manager but he finished and went home at 10am this morning, I saw him getting in his car to leave as I pulled out of the yard to go out on delivery. Obviously my union rep wasn't in today either as he doesn't work Saturdays. It’s going to take me around 40 mins to drive back through the Saturday pre-Christmas traffic, a journey of 2 miles, so anticipate getting back to the office around 5:15pm, ten mins to pouch off and hopefully I can be leaving to clock off around 5:30pm, So I should be home around 6:15pm. I'm lucky I only live around 3 miles away and shouldn't take me too long in this traffic. Looking forward to my Sunday off tomorrow, it’s been a long week, Monday will soon be here again and expect a grilling off my COM as to why I brought back the hundred calls.

Another Orwellian Distopian view BUT SUPERBLY ACCURATE !

vote yes and this is YOUR FUTURE you may want it and are desperate to go the extra mile for these crooks but i do not !

VOTE NO !!!!

[Foxel]

This has happened to me a few times. More when I was with agency and sent to the worst parts of town on an unknown round. I remember one of the lads getting assaulted.

[k979aaa]

And people are going to do this for £11.59 an hour!

[2yearpostie]

Back to the future part 2

Mon June 10th 2024


Started work at 10;15am, Theres next to no mail in so the flats have already been sorted by the full time staff, and they are doing the last packets.
Everyone gets out by 11am and its a wonderful sunny day about 21oc.
The mails that light im missing out every 10 houses as we dont cold call d2ds anymore. Most of the customers have twigged on that to get parcels they need to be in or arrange a redelivery or safeplace so theres only 5 redelivers to do and we are now charging for collection so no ones intrested.

Break time half way in at around 12;30pm for 30 mins at a loverly country pub, then on to do the last side of the village, but its only parcels as most of the mail has fallen off a cliff since its £1;50 per stamp.
Due to seasonal flex finish time is 3;30pm so theres plenty of daylight left to take the wife and kids out later.

[chickenwittle]

It's Saturday 25th Nov 2023 around 4:30pm, I've been on delivery since around 10:15am so just over 6 hrs, I should have finished half an hour ago but my COM informed me this morning that due to heavier than expected traffic that he was 'asking me' to flex up by half an hour. It has hardly stopped raining since I started and I'm soaked to the skin. It is dark and I'm not familiar with the area. I've been provided with a torch, but no batteries (was told I have to buy these myself) so I'm struggling to see some of the house numbers. The PDA has given up the ghost being so wet so I'm trying to write down the tracking numbers as I deliver them but due to the rain my pen has stopped working too. I was trying to take photos on my mobile phone but it's raining so hard that I dare not use it. I have just knocked on a customer’s door to pick up a customer collection but they said it wasn't ready and could I come back later, I said No. I’m just trying to get over a heavy cold so unable to go at a decent pace, the last couple of weeks of bad weather are taking their toll on me but can’t go sick because I had a four day absence around eight months ago when I twisted my ankle on delivery. I have three packets left that were attempted yesterday but they weren’t in so I have to re-deliver today, unfortunately due to the rain one of the address labels has got so damp the address has become unreadable, earlier, before the PDA died I was struggling to scan tracked so was putting them in manually, it was hard though because my hands were so cold. Because my hands are frozen I'm using the otherwise useless PDA to knock on the doors. A close call with a dog roaming around the street with no owner, I had to wait in someone’s garden until it got bored and run off. It is completely dark now and I'm struggling to get anyone to answer when I have packets, customers are not keen to open the door in the dark, the conversation is always the same "KNOCK, KNOCK" "who is it?" " the Postman, I have a packet for you!" nothing happens for a few minutes, lots of whispering behind the door, then see someone looking out of the living room window, then after some time the security chain is removed and a little old lady looks out of the crack of the door before taking the packet. Then onto the next house. The rain coming down harder now which is a blessing because a little earlier there was a couple of dodgy looking guys in hoodies who were following me, I was keeping my trolly as close to me as possible. My shoes are full of water due to the constant rain so not bothering avoiding the puddles, my feet couldn’t get any wetter. I still have around 100 calls left but I'm going to stop delivering the mail and just do the last tracked as instructed by my COM and I'm going to call it a day. I can’t write out any cards either because of my useless pen and my P739 cards are soaking wet so I hope they are all in and answer the door. I would have called my manager but he finished and went home at 10am this morning, I saw him getting in his car to leave as I pulled out of the yard to go out on delivery. Obviously my union rep wasn't in today either as he doesn't work Saturdays. It’s going to take me around 40 mins to drive back through the Saturday pre-Christmas traffic, a journey of 2 miles, so anticipate getting back to the office around 5:15pm, ten mins to pouch off and hopefully I can be leaving to clock off around 5:30pm, So I should be home around 6:15pm. I'm lucky I only live around 3 miles away and shouldn't take me too long in this traffic. Looking forward to my Sunday off tomorrow, it’s been a long week, Monday will soon be here again and expect a grilling off my COM as to why I brought back the hundred calls.

Sounds bleak….
But if you twisted your ankle at work and it’s work related it shouldn’t (unless the policy has changed) be added on to your sick allowance (if it’s a pot hole or whatever make sure you take a photo and inform your manager right away), and remember if it happened in someone’s driveway in the dark you could actually go down the route of legal action.
Don’t use your phone for any parcel/letter issues.
If your place of work are not providing you with proper equipment for you to perform your job (batteries for torch or padlock for trolley) then don’t do it. Health and safety is protected.
As for the dog roaming the street, take a photo, and then leave that entire street as inaccessible. You are just following protocol after all….
And if you can’t get hold of the manager (and only use the pda to call the office, don’t use your own phone) then again you can use that as evidence to back you up. PDA call history will show you tried calling several times and left numerous messages.

But you’re right…. There could be some really lousy shifts ahead…

Wow that speech could have come straight from the mouth of a manager, that’s uncanny.

[k979aaa]

Back to the future part 2

Mon June 10th 2024


Started work at 10;15am, Theres next to no mail in so the flats have already been sorted by the full time staff, and they are doing the last packets.
Everyone gets out by 11am and its a wonderful sunny day about 21oc.
The mails that light im missing out every 10 houses as we dont cold call d2ds anymore. Most of the customers have twigged on that to get parcels they need to be in or arrange a redelivery or safeplace so theres only 5 redelivers to do and we are now charging for collection so no ones intrested.

Break time half way in at around 12;30pm for 30 mins at a loverly country pub, then on to do the last side of the village, but its only parcels as most of the mail has fallen off a cliff since its £1;50 per stamp.
Due to seasonal flex finish time is 3;30pm so theres plenty of daylight left to take the wife and kids out later.

And then you woke up!

[chickenwittle]

They can’t ask u to flex up on a Saturday because it has to be paid back in the same week unless that changes

don't think so. in the blurb somewhere it states paid back with next 10 days as far as I remember

No this is all still up for review, so nobody knows what they are voting for regarding flexi time.

[sindba]

It's Saturday 25th Nov 2023 around 4:30pm, I've been on delivery since around 10:15am so just over 6 hrs, I should have finished half an hour ago but my COM informed me this morning that due to heavier than expected traffic that he was 'asking me' to flex up by half an hour. It has hardly stopped raining since I started and I'm soaked to the skin. It is dark and I'm not familiar with the area. I've been provided with a torch, but no batteries (was told I have to buy these myself) so I'm struggling to see some of the house numbers. The PDA has given up the ghost being so wet so I'm trying to write down the tracking numbers as I deliver them but due to the rain my pen has stopped working too. I was trying to take photos on my mobile phone but it's raining so hard that I dare not use it. I have just knocked on a customer’s door to pick up a customer collection but they said it wasn't ready and could I come back later, I said No. I’m just trying to get over a heavy cold so unable to go at a decent pace, the last couple of weeks of bad weather are taking their toll on me but can’t go sick because I had a four day absence around eight months ago when I twisted my ankle on delivery. I have three packets left that were attempted yesterday but they weren’t in so I have to re-deliver today, unfortunately due to the rain one of the address labels has got so damp the address has become unreadable, earlier, before the PDA died I was struggling to scan tracked so was putting them in manually, it was hard though because my hands were so cold. Because my hands are frozen I'm using the otherwise useless PDA to knock on the doors. A close call with a dog roaming around the street with no owner, I had to wait in someone’s garden until it got bored and run off. It is completely dark now and I'm struggling to get anyone to answer when I have packets, customers are not keen to open the door in the dark, the conversation is always the same "KNOCK, KNOCK" "who is it?" " the Postman, I have a packet for you!" nothing happens for a few minutes, lots of whispering behind the door, then see someone looking out of the living room window, then after some time the security chain is removed and a little old lady looks out of the crack of the door before taking the packet. Then onto the next house. The rain coming down harder now which is a blessing because a little earlier there was a couple of dodgy looking guys in hoodies who were following me, I was keeping my trolly as close to me as possible. My shoes are full of water due to the constant rain so not bothering avoiding the puddles, my feet couldn’t get any wetter. I still have around 100 calls left but I'm going to stop delivering the mail and just do the last tracked as instructed by my COM and I'm going to call it a day. I can’t write out any cards either because of my useless pen and my P739 cards are soaking wet so I hope they are all in and answer the door. I would have called my manager but he finished and went home at 10am this morning, I saw him getting in his car to leave as I pulled out of the yard to go out on delivery. Obviously my union rep wasn't in today either as he doesn't work Saturdays. It’s going to take me around 40 mins to drive back through the Saturday pre-Christmas traffic, a journey of 2 miles, so anticipate getting back to the office around 5:15pm, ten mins to pouch off and hopefully I can be leaving to clock off around 5:30pm, So I should be home around 6:15pm. I'm lucky I only live around 3 miles away and shouldn't take me too long in this traffic. Looking forward to my Sunday off tomorrow, it’s been a long week, Monday will soon be here again and expect a grilling off my COM as to why I brought back the hundred calls.

Afraid it's going to get worse mate. You're gonna be called into the office on Monday to be shown your PDA tracking and have a "supportive" performance managing from your manager.