Postal strike

simple solution...sack the lot, re-hire with no strike contracts, pay them related to performance
my fear is they will drag the whole thing crashing down in some kind of Götterdämmerung!

@BoroughPaul -

I fear you are right that the combination of a government that doesn't understand the concept of a "public service", a management that is rewarded for doing the wrong things, and workforce that has only one way to influence changes in the organisation is going to destroy it.

But isn't banning strikes the sort of thing that goes on in totalitarian states?

Workplace organisation is one of the few counter-balances working people have against intransigent, overweaning, bullying and exploitative management.

If you want to see what happens in the absence of such organisation, I suggest reading the Ragged Trousered Philanthropist.

In a competitive economic system, even if an owner or manager isn't naturally unreasonable towards their workers, they are forced to be for fear of being undercut by competitors who are.

Could you suggest an alternative way to check the abuses of the owners of the means of production and their managers?

in a word...no...but what about a situation as with the royal mail where it is the "workers" who are being unreasonable?

First evidence today that the backlog might be being sorted - a month-old copy of the Economist and a gift of clothes for my baby which he probably won't wear because he's grown since they were posted from the South Coast on 16th September...

Some confused looking postmen, possibly some of the 30,000 temps, delivering in Shad Thames today, a Sunday afternoon.

I received two items of post this Sunday evening about 6.00pm.
One was a book I ordered on 03/10/09, I am still waiting for one I ordered on 10/09/09.

I am waiting for two items that are larger than normal letters... went to Mandela Way to ask if they would be there and they would have just missed a card, but no. Apparently the larger items are stored in Dartford and sorted by managers.

Tom Pepper wrote:

Tom Pepper wrote:

Tom Pepper wrote:

Tom Pepper wrote:

Got home Monday p.m. to find a card left at 13.00 to say that a package would be at Mandela Way sorting office, allow 24 hours before coming to collect it.
Went there at 15.00 today, (Tuesday), only to told that it hadn't been brought back yet.
"Why, has the guy been out all day, all night, and most of today since leaving the card yesterday?" I asked.
Fortunately, my attempt at humour didn't appear to annoy him, "Come back Thursday or Friday mate, it MIGHT be here by then," he offered.

Update on collection of my package from Mandela Way.
Went there today, (Friday), at around 12.10 only to be told, "It hasn't come back yet."
"Back from where?" I asked.
"It goes to Nine Elms depot and they are sometimes a bit slow returning it here, give it until the middle of next week !"
Fortunately the package contains, (I think), a couple of ink cartridges for my printer so I'm not desperate for it's arrival, but imagine if it were something that I really needed.
I have no desire to see hundreds of Royal Mail employees lose their jobs but it is not difficult to see why the public would be happy if the delivery of mail was handed over to a more efficient company.

Further update, (same package.)
Went to Mandela Way at 09.35 today, Tuesday 29.09.09 and presented the original card that was left by the mailman on 21.09.09.
Person returned to counter after 3 - 4 minutes and began to say something, I could make out about one word in three.
I apologised, (on reflection a wrong move, maybe he should have apologised), and said "I don't understand what it is that you are saying."
He went away and came back with the manager who said "Let me photocopy the card, put your phone number on it and I'll call you if it comes in."
Yes, he said IF.
I'm getting a bad feeling about this, I can visualise a protracted fight with Royal Mail for re-imbursement of the value of the goods that I'm quite sure now that I'll ever see.

Further still, (and final),update on this saga.

After telephoning PC World re the awaited ink cartridges that are in the disappeared package I received a call from their head office this a.m.
They said that will re-credit my Visa card for the amount that I had paid, and apologised for the sorry incident caused by Royal Mail.
The guy I spoke with said "it is not worth arguing about, or waiting and hoping that the package eventually arrives."
He said that he is making these calls on a daily basis now and that PC World, by responding quickly and decisively to disgruntled on-line customers, hope that those same customers will use a PC World store to buy that which they hadn't received via Royal Mail.

this happens to me on a regular basis. the last time, in september, not only did the counter guy come back after a rummage, to say nothing was at mandela way for me, even though I also had 'the card'. I made a bit of a fuss and he went off to rummage some more and came back with two different parcels (that I was also waiting for) but not the missing one. he photocopied 'the card' and low and behold, good as his word, he rang me the next morning (good job my phone was turned off at 7.15 am!) and the van postie brought it around to teh flat at half 8. So result! unfortunately, I have had one delivery of post only in two weeks! and loads of letters missing still from well, all year. the postal strike doesn't actually make a difference as it's always this way.
the managers there need to be sacked actually, and proper instructions brought it so posties don't keep posting our undelivered mail back into post boxes on borough high street. I am considering taking a few days off work and standing with my camera to catch them for the papers.

Is SE1 still on strike? Ive had no post for 11 days nows and Im expecting quiet a few things to come through now. I live on Pages Walk, can someone in the same area let me know if they have had a delivery at all this week? Thank you!

I was visited no less than 4 times on monday by posties. 3 times delivering parcels, several of which were for my neighbour which i said I would take in, when i noticed them about to put a card through their door when they 1st knocked at mine,( who knows if they would have ever seen them had they gone back to the depot). The 4th was just a letter delivery. I guess these were temporary staff are beginning to clear the back log. . Now I am just waiting for 1 more parcel to arrive.