Dispute Update : Today Royal Mail have announced executive action in 15 different offices across the UK.

[Ren Hoëk]

If RM only pay us for the hours worked, then surely that is a zero hour Contract. As a 39 hour contract is guaranteed 39 hours of paid work every week. I personally have no issue working every minute of my time every day. My issue would be what stops RM from rushing us round making lighter days by streaming mail etc so they can trim the wage bill certain weeks. This for me is an absolute no negotiation point. I work hard for RM I'm never sick never late and give it my all. In return I expect some level of commitment back from the employer in terms of a stable employment.

Im surprised this hasn't been said already. I can't see RM pushing to change us to Zero Hour Contracts as that would be such a monumental shift. Zero Hour contracts go both ways as well.I do not think you could run this company with that level of flexibility. Not to mention it would be a PR disaster for them.

As it stands. I have a contract which states 38 hours. Legally I get paid for 38 hours, it's their job to find 38 hours worth of work for me to do. Try and not pay me because there was nothing to do for an hour then they would be in breach of contract.

[Newbie001]

The next logical step after clocking in/out. Would be banking hours.
Having worked in an industry that used it, that is the one the union should fight tooth and nail. On paper sounds ok but in reality an absolute nightmare.

[LouBarlow]

I think people not concerned about clocking in and out are missing the point. Royal Mail's plan is to only pay you for the hours you work, so if you come back 20 minutes early, boom, you lose 20 minutes of pay. You might think that you can string out your delivery or work slower, but again, you are being tracked every step of the way, to make sure you are earning that money.

Whats the problem , just work your hours and do the job properly have your break , van checks the works and come back on time

You obviously missed the post where I stated I do these and still save time. I know it is a long established phrase for mocking, but mail *is* down, and for the first time in all my years on the job, I can't deny it. To pad out my days I would have to work slower than the guidelines set out by RM and given they now have the tools to keep track would be a dangerous tactic to adapt. I have no problem with being worked for every hour I am paid, but it is important to take the right approach to achieving this - docking pay for finishing early would be literally the worst way, but I am not really hearing of any alternative being put forward by the union.

Facts are, we do have to adapt to the change in the market. Expecting the job to remain the same as it ever was, went out of the window when we capitulated into privatising the business. Good memories to look back on, but we are now a penny-pinching business and we either accept that or move on to another job, but good luck getting one as well paid yet easy as this one.

[mags999]

effinn EASY what office you in probably one which still has 6,oclock starts and job and knock

[LouBarlow]

effinn EASY what office you in probably one which still has 6,oclock starts and job and knock

Yes we have both. As I said, the next revision is going to be brutal. We were one of the last offices delivering Amazon parcels, and haven't had our rounds changed since losing the contract, hence, the easy life at the moment, coupled with a manager who seems to not give a f**k as he is close to retirement. As I say, I have no problem in working every hour I am paid, and expect that to come around soon enough, so for now I am making hay while the sun shines.

[leolion855]

Didn't even know we had lost Amazon the amount of the things i still deliver daily!

[mags999]

fair reply lou we were in the same boat around 3 to 4 years ago but certainly changed now and getting worse

[Ozzvaldo]

We "lost" Amazon last year, as our DOM is constantly reminding us, although it's not as simple as that. We certainly don't have the very high levels we used to, granted, but I usually have at 5-10 Amazon items on every delivery. In an office of 50 deliveries, that's still a fair few.

It's inconsistent, too. Sometimes we get odd days where we get double or triple the usual number of oversized coming into the office, or 3 day stretches where we get stacks of the smaller ones that will fit through letterboxes.

Still, that's not going to stop our DOM trying to implement new lapsing plans on the basis of having "lost" Amazon.

[belle smith]

The next logical step after clocking in/out. Would be banking hours.
Having worked in an industry that used it, that is the one the union should fight tooth and nail. On paper sounds ok but in reality an absolute nightmare.

Of course it will be that's what they have always wanted is anulised hours.
I don't think the union would agree to that but, if they get sidelined. Then make no mistake RM will bring it in with executive action

[viking1488]

The next logical step after clocking in/out. Would be banking hours.
Having worked in an industry that used it, that is the one the union should fight tooth and nail. On paper sounds ok but in reality an absolute nightmare.

i believe your right on this one ive heard people talking about clocking in and out and what if you finish early banking hours and take xmas pressure/people on the sick in your office they will come and get them hours back off you so for the runners this might be a huge problem as you might see yourself working overtime days off etc just for the fun of it i have also worked in an industry where they used this system and yes its a ball ache and there is not a lot you can do about it as your due them the time and 10 min here 10 mins there soon adds up

[stodgy88]

It,s started in our office,if you are back early you owe them the hours or you stop while your finishing time ,so everyones taking break (in office any way,not sure about outside ) and some people not coming in early on overtime,working in managements favour at moment as not very busy ,but fun and games will start ,when we get a really busy day.

[Woody Guthrie]

The next logical step after clocking in/out. Would be banking hours..

No, for banking hours to work the next logical step would have to be performance management otherwise even the dumbest runner is going to hang their duty out until finish time and banking hours would actually cost RM money.

The business needs some way of saying on a daily basis how long a duty should take and then the ability to question why it took longer otherwise their plans for banking hours completely rely on the stupidity of the workforce.

[deltaforce]

They already have.They have software to set out your walk content and software to calculate the indoor element and staffing hours. They now have Pda Actuals to compare the theory to the realities

[SpacePhoenix]

They already have.They have software to set out your walk content and software to calculate the indoor element and staffing hours. They now have Pda Actuals to compare the theory to the realities

It's not too much of a leap to them having software dynamically compile walks each day. I believe that the REX software that PF uses does so but on a smaller scale

[DGH]

As it stands. I have a contract which states 38 hours. Legally I get paid for 38 hours, it's their job to find 38 hours worth of work for me to do. Try and not pay me because there was nothing to do for an hour then they would be in breach of contract.

What I always fail to understand is that there is almost always work to do (even if it's just putting in door to doors through the office yet managers almost never ask for anyone who returns early to fill out their hours except when there's mail that needs delivering.

Even if there were no door to doors left to prep in the office, there's loads of organising/tidying of yorks, sorting areas, aisles that could be done. A decent primary school teacher deployed as manager in most offices would make a big difference, i think.