First Class post - a joke that should be ended

[Mervyn and Trish]

Perhaps the postie walked all the way?

[Barb44]

I wonder if he was holding onto it until he got his Christmas tip, which we gave him a couple of days ago!!

[Mervyn and Trish]

Was his tip along the lines of "get a move on"?

[Barb44]

[ItsmeAnnC]

I received a package yesterday and it had "First Class" stamped on both sides. It was posted on 6 December..........in Pennsylvania! Not bad compared to our first class post!

[Mervyn and Trish]

Yesterday I received a package from China (ordered via Amazon) not due until 3rd January.

One I ordered from a UK source (also via Amazon) has not yet arrived!

[Dark Knight]

are you still buying Panda innards and powdered Rhino horn then Merv?

top tip, they don't work....well according to QBob anyway

[Stephen]

are you still buying Panda innards and powdered Rhino horn then Merv?

top tip, they don't work....well according to QBob anyway

Oh yes they do....Oops....pretend I didn't say that

[Frank Manning]

Sequel to my story about Sue and the UKMail delivery man (aka Putin's KGB). This morning very early, (8.30am) I had to answer the door to him (in PJs) ('Look we had a heavy night with the outlaws, OK?)He said,

"Nem?!!!"

I was laughing so much at being caught by the KGB in the flagrante delecti, but I told him, and he handed a parcel over which I signed for. So then I asked him his name "Lukasz" was the reply and so I said where are you from? Expecting Validvostock, or Norilsk, but no Poland was his reply and he told me he has another 130 'drops' to do today. To his surprise I said well done, and wished him a happy Christmas.

The order was placed by phone lunchtime Monday, despatched Tuesday, and arrived Wednesday, you cant say fairer than that. I hope he comes again.

[barney]

130 drops x 65p each = £84.50 for his days work.
Then he pays for his fuel and vehicle out of that.

It probably works out at about £4.00 an hour after expenses and people think that cabin stewards are hard done by.

I listened to a chap from the delievry company Hermes (Next) on Radio 4 last week telling of the low pay scandal of it.

It's a good service no doubt, but at who's expense

Part of the reason that they can takes jobs like this is because our benefit system subsidises them with tax credits, child tax credits, child benefit etc.
It's the same with all low paid jobs. Tesco pays minimum wage because the taxpayer picks up the slack.
Quite often, particularly if they live in rented, the benefit entitlement exceeds the wage.
Until they are made to pay a decent living wage, we will continue to pick up the bill.

Merry Xmas

[Stephen]

And on that cheery note.......I'm just off down to the council office before they close to see if I can get any benefits to help pay for Christmas. I'll even put on my best foreign accent. GIVE ME THE MONEY YOU BA*TARDS

Happy Easter Everyone

[colwill]

It's the same with all low paid jobs. Tesco pays minimum wage because the taxpayer picks up the slack.
Quite often, particularly if they live in rented, the benefit entitlement exceeds the wage.
Until they are made to pay a decent living wage, we will continue to pick up the bill.

Merry Xmas

I agree with just about everything you've said, but must defend Tesco. My daughter worked for them when she was at university, and they paid quite a bit more than the minimum wage. Has something changed?

[Silver_Shiney]

We had a letter come in yesterday - it was posted on 15 August last year... Fortunately the donation cheque is still in date (just).

[gfwgfw]

Collections from a high proportion of our post boxes are being cleared early morning twixt 7.30/8.30 by our trustee posty whilst effecting his/her morning delivery

Later collections at the main post office in town

[Silver_Shiney]

Our post was delivered at 1745 last night...

[barney]

Reinforces my arguement about you get what you pay for Alan

Huge changes are on the way. I bet we don't get a daily delivery in five years time.
Collections are now made to suit them, not the customer and it is all about the money.

As I said before, Royal Mail once existed for no other reason than to collect & deliver mail.
Now it exists to make a profit for the shareholders and the quickest way of doing that is cut staff/costs.

[Ranchi]

We are the envy of many of our friends; we still have a second post. ( unfortunately nothing is ever delivered by first post)

[Silver_Shiney]

Reinforces my arguement about you get what you pay for Alan

So how come others can do it cheaper? I've just sent four parcels from eBay sales via Collect+. It's a tracked service and is cheaper that RM's bog standard 2nd class.

Huge changes are on the way. I bet we don't get a daily delivery in five years time.
Collections are now made to suit them, not the customer and it is all about the money.

As I said before, Royal Mail once existed for no other reason than to collect & deliver mail.
Now it exists to make a profit for the shareholders and the quickest way of doing that is cut staff/costs.

Agreed

[Not so ancient mariner]

So how come others can do it cheaper? I've just sent four parcels from eBay sales via Collect+. It's a tracked service and is cheaper that RM's bog standard 2nd class.

The principal reason is the universal service requirement. Many independent operators just cherrypick the lucrative services in localised highly populated areas, and those who do offer a wider service charge more for deliveries to areas in the back of beyond - even the Isle of Wight!

The Post Office cannot do this, and has to charge an 'average' price that covers the cost of deliveries to all areas.

That's not to say that there's no scope for efficiencies to be made, but a level playing field would help enormously

[Silver_Shiney]

So how come others can do it cheaper? I've just sent four parcels from eBay sales via Collect+. It's a tracked service and is cheaper that RM's bog standard 2nd class.

The principal reason is the universal service requirement. Many independent operators just cherrypick the lucrative services in localised highly populated areas, and those who do offer a wider service charge more for deliveries to areas in the back of beyond - even the Isle of Wight!

The Post Office cannot do this, and has to charge an 'average' price that covers the cost of deliveries to all areas.

That's not to say that there's no scope for efficiencies to be made, but a level playing field would help enormously

Collect+ aren't localised - they deliver nationwide, just as RM are supposed to do. As a smaller outfit, I should have expected their overheads to be higher, yet they can provide a cheaper service (over a certain weight) than RM.

[barney]

A cheaper service until they go bust Alan. (Roadline, Citylink and many, many others over the years)

You wll also find that any consignment going to a very 'out of the way' area will be 'subcontracted out'

I.e. they usually put it in the post

As do Doc-ex and many other private carriers, or so I've been told.

They are only interested in city centres and large towns because that's where the money is.

It is a very difficult business to make any money out of.
I bet most don't know that TNT is actually owned by the Dutch Post Office.

[qbman1]

It's going up again - from 30th March

[Mervyn and Trish]

It's going up again - from 30th March

The price or the delivery time?

[qbman1]

Don't be silly Merv - they each only go one way !

[Silver_Shiney]

Twice in the last month the office has had a "Signed For" item dumped through the letterbox during office hours, no attempt to get us to come and sign for it. Second-class stuff posted on a Friday arrives the same time as first-class stuff posted the same time.