Royal Mail hires more staff to tackle Croydon post delays

Royal Mail has taken on more staff at its Croydon base to tackle the ongoing delays to people’s post caused by coronavirus-related staff absence.

Residents in the London borough are enduring long delays as the need to self-isolate forces workers off-shift and put enormous pressure on the delivery network.

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Royal Mail has also said it is dealing with “exceptionally high volumes of mail posted during this further lockdown period”.

Earlier this month the local Labour MP, Sarah Jones, raised concerns that some people awaiting their vaccination might miss their letters calling them forward.

However, it has since been confirmed that the notices do not contain any appointment details but more general information on how people can book their vaccine appointment.

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We have taken on additional temporary workers at our Croydon depot to help manage Covid-related absences.

“The levels of Covid-related absences, which includes those colleagues who are self-isolating in line with government guidance, tend to vary by local area. This has a direct impact on our staffing levels, especially in areas where there are higher levels of local outbreaks.