Royal Mail staff sickness leave at record levels

• 13 December 2021
• Transport / Logistics Services

Royal Mail staff absence levels are more than double that of 2018 before the pandemic, according to the carrier. It has maintained that deliveries are operating as normal across most of the UK.

Sources have told the BBC that much of the sickness levels are down to COVID-19, though there are high levels of staff off due to stress too.

Royal Mail has listed the delivery offices where staffing problems will impact their delivery times on their website. This amounts to 21 of the more than 1,200 across the UK.

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “Every item of mail is important to us. Where offices are experiencing local challenges, such as higher than usual absence levels, we have asked teams to rotate deliveries to minimise delays for individual customers.

“We have also reminded colleagues that the delivery, collection and processing of letters and parcels should be treated with equal importance.”

The postal operator has indicated that many of the seasonal staff who have been taken on to deal with the peak delivery period will be offered permanent contracts. However the Communications Workers Union (CWU) has published an open letter saying that times are very difficult for its members.

Terry Pullinger, deputy general secretary of postal at the CWU, wrote: “Trying to maintain a great public service throughout the pandemic has been incredibly difficult for everybody, especially whilst deploying major changes and considering the great annual challenge of the Christmas period pressure.”