The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has warned that Royal Mail has become 'chaotic', with postal workers instructed to leave doctors' and hospital letters on racks to prioritise parcel deliveries. Giving evidence to the Business and Trade Committee, CWU deputy general secretary Martin Walsh said staff are working under a 'pyramid framework' that places special delivery items at the top, followed by parcels or tracked items, then first-class mail, with second-class mail at the bottom.
Mr Walsh told MPs that this system leads to delays, and workers often feel 'aggrieved' when told to leave medical letters behind. 'All employees want to deliver and they know their customers, and some of them feel very aggrieved that they're told to leave doctors' letters, hospital letters in the frames to prioritise tracked,' he said. CWU general secretary Dave Ward described the service as 'chaotic' and a 'demoralising environment' for workers, with many struggling to clear their daily workload.
Royal Mail's owner Daniel Kretinsky, chairman of parent firm EP Group, disputed the union's claims, stating there is no 'management decision' to prioritise parcels over letters. 'Categorically this is not any management decision and nobody is incentivised to do that, and we think it is actually not happening,' he told the committee. However, he acknowledged that parcel delivery is a way to 'preserve Royal Mail for a longer period of time'.
Mr Kretinsky apologised to customers affected by delayed letters, saying he is 'deeply sorry for any letter that arrives late'. He argued that service issues cannot be resolved without reforming the universal service obligation (USO), including proposals to scrap Saturday second-class post. Intensive talks with the CWU over the plans have been extended until the end of March, with Mr Ward noting that while progress is being made, industrial action 'cannot be ruled out'.
