Rhondda postie who found fame during pandemic sacked by Royal Mail

Emily Price

A postie from Rhondda who found fame on TikTok during the pandemic has been sacked by Royal Mail after taking time off work with mental health issues.

Laura Orgill went viral during the first lockdown gaining more than 860,000 followers for her hilarious videos documenting her postie round in the south Wales valleys.

In an emotional video posted to TikTok on Friday (July 19), the 30-year-old said Royal Mail had sacked her and “marched her off the premises like a criminal”.

Citing a back operation, endometriosis, rugby injuries and mental health problems Laura said her time off work had triggered internal processes that eventually led to her dismissal.

The TikTok star who recently went through a divorce from her wife had been sharing the experience of life after the end of a marriage on social media.

@lauraorgill I am absolutely heartbroken 💔 #royalmail #job #tiktokpostie #heartbroken ♬ Ambient-style emotional piano – MoppySound

‘Stuggling’

Speaking to her followers in tears, she said: “If you’ve been following me, then you know exactly my situation – me and my ex split up, selling the house, financially struggling, paying for the house myself.

“And they knew all of this and understandably I had a few days off, and I mean the odd day because I was struggling. The police have been involved in my situation – it’s been bad.

“I haven’t had a day off in three months, I work Sundays, I work all my rest days, I do everything I can for them.

“I’ve been in the company six years, never have I been in a situation where I’ve triggered a dismissal for my sick.

“But there’s no support – you triggered it – you’re gone. They marched me off the premises like a criminal.

“All the things that I did for that company during lockdown. They had me doing Royal Mail TV, they had me doing apprenticeship campaigns, they had me doing everything.

“I went along with it because I love the company – I actually do love working there.

“I actually did love my job, it just goes to show that when you love your job, you put everything into it – but it means nothing.”

During the height of the pandemic, Royal Mail was supportive of Laura’s content documenting her life as a key worker.

It led to her securing a number of presenting roles for TV and and the postal service even included her in a video for their official Facebook page.

But Laura hit the headlines in 2021 when Royal Mail banned her from posting videos wearing the company uniform following an increasing number of complaints about her content.

It came to a head after she posted a video to TikTok joking about not giving people enough time to collect their parcels.

Royal Mail said it operated a clear policy with regards to posting under the Royal Mail brand on social media.

Laura apologised and has since continued to post regular social media videos about her private life – minus the Royal Mail content.

Last month she said she missed creating videos on her postie round but added that she was enjoying showing her followers her life.

In a video posted to TikTok on June 11, Laura said: “They (Royal Mail) actually have got their own TikTok now so imagine bringing TikTok postie back and being on that account – that would be cool.”

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “Employee dismissals are carefully considered and are taken in line with our own policies and the requirements set out in employment law. It would be inappropriate to comment on individual cases.

“We take the welfare of our colleagues very seriously and have extensive measures in place including unlimited mental health consultations, 24/7 GP appointments and our employee assistance programme, which is a free confidential helpline for support with emotional and practical issues as well as financial and legal guidance.”