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arcels piled high amid Royal Mail strikes have caught the unwanted attention of foxes and rats tjhat have been chewing at them, a union has said.
The Communication Workers Union, which represents more than 100,000 postal workers, is holding its latest 48-hour walkout from Wednesday.
Officials said that hoards of undelivered parcels are being left outside depots, leaving them at risk of exposure to vermin.
Pictures published in the Telegraph from a site in Bristol have shown foxes nosing and scratching at boxes, with the union saying rodents have also been able to eat through packaging.
Royal Mail has been rocked by strikes in recent weeks and has brought forward the final date to send Christmas cards, with further walkouts expected on December 22 and 23.
Pictures have shown thousands of packages left out in the elements at the Bristol site.
A Communication Workers Union spokesperson said: “Royal Mail’s CEOs are more satisfied having rats and foxes eat your Christmas presents than they are with their own workers having decent pay and conditions.”
Royal Mail said that 30,000 parcels are being processed per hour in Bristol.
The final date for sending a second class letter before Christmas was on Monday, said Royal Mail, and the last chance for a first class card to arrive on time will be Friday, December 16.
However, a union spokesman reportedly said it would be unclear if a Christmas card sent on Wednesday would arrive before December 25 – adding that some items may not arrive until February.
The Greeting Card Association told media that as many as a third of people will be delivering their Christmas cards by hand this year.
A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “The pictures show a busy mail centre with thousands of parcels moving through our network. The site shown is processing 30,000 parcels an hour so volume moves very quickly through the centre and on to the next stage in its journey.
“When we are busy, especially as we recover from damaging strike action, we may have to use all space on site for the temporary storage of mail. This frees up space in the mail centre to ensure we can keep all mail moving.
“We are doing all we can to deliver Christmas for our customers and minimise the impact of damaging industrial action. The CWU is striking at our busiest time, holding Christmas to ransom for our customers, businesses and families across the country.
“We have well developed contingency plans in place to minimise delays and keep people, businesses and the country connected. However, we cannot fully replace the daily efforts of our frontline workforce on days the CWU are taking strike action.”
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