Royal Mail ‘on brink of collapse’ as 400 workers reportedly quit every week

Union blames new delivery system as Royal Mail staff departures rise

The union wants ministers, Royal Mail executives and worker representatives to meet for emergency talks, warning that the business is “on the brink of collapse” if it fails to tackle its staffing problems.

The CWU links the increase in departures to DM26, Royal Mail’s new delivery system, which aims to reorganise routes and improve efficiency. 

Before the changes were introduced, the company was already losing around 330 employees each week from its 83,000-strong workforce.

A union spokesperson told The Independent that the rollout was a “major factor” in workers’ decisions to leave. 

Concerns about pay and workloads that employees struggle to manage were also cited as reasons for the growing staff exodus.

Dave Ward, the CWU’s general secretary, said the Government needed to take part in discussions before the situation deteriorated further.

“We are calling for a summit between stakeholders and the Government to address the ticking timebomb that is Royal Mail,” he said.

New figures show improvement in UK delivery performance

Royal Mail says its new delivery system is improving performance, although the company admits further work is needed to meet its service targets.

The DM26 rollout has now reached 90 per cent of the company’s 1,200 delivery offices. 

The company expects results to improve further as the new system is introduced across the rest of its network. 

However, Royal Mail still faces pressure to improve its delivery performance. 

In April, it published a five-year improvement plan that included a pledge to invest £500 million in service quality.

The company is also preparing for the annual surge in post around Christmas, with plans to recruit 22,000 temporary workers. 

They will help sort, transport and deliver the extra letters and parcels expected during the festive period.