Royal Mail Share Discussion Threads

[lefrene] 23/3/2020 12:12

Perhaps because civil servant types have the same sneering ignorant attitude as yourself? And perhaps I have never been the brown-nosing type. Career management types never like having the truth spoken to them, their vanity is much more important.

RMG is crippled by the civil service type structure, it's only the fact that it had a monopoly for so long that it persists at all, in the real world it would have had to adapt or perish.

Their main strength is the Parcel Force operation which has a different culture to that of the Mail side of things even though there is some sharing of vehicles. Given the inroads made by the other parcel carriers I would not be surprised to see PF sold off at some point leaving the Mail naked and helpless, as letter rates would have to become so extortionate that it would be pretty much killed off.

Perhaps the new broom will shake it up and do the necessary, there's certainly plenty for him to get his teeth into.

[tubbs64] 23/3/2020 11:43

I repeat ..... I don't know how they haven't made you head of Logistics..... there must be a reason?

[lefrene] 23/3/2020 10:48

Tubbs64, I built up a company and employed some 200 class 1 drivers over almost 6 years without a single accident or a single missed booking, and this was not going to the same places day after day, carrying the same things in the same vehicles.

I did try van drivers, warehouse workers and Class 11 drivers, but swiftly found those groups problematic, and soon stuck to only Class 1 drivers. After I sold the business, I took a couple of years off, and then did random self employed driving two or three days a week to take myself past retirement age, although I continued a couple of years beyond that.

I have seen behind the scenes of a great many industries and many dozens of transport operations. RMG are excellent at maintenance and safety, but their operations side is dismal, due to the civil service type mentality, ie internal politics and game playing trumps all else.

Traffic clerks and managers who have never been on the road, and have no sense of geography, or why lorries cannot operate at maximum legal speeds at all times! (their running sheet timings assume that the vehicle can do this).

A good many times with an empty vehicle for a return journey, I have gone into a traffic office and reeled off all the locations I could deliver to or collect from, with the time I had available. One just gets blank looks. Their operations are very simple, for five days a week they go to the same places at the same times, they frequently run completely empty vehicles on a round trip because they won't pick the phone up to ask if the depot they are about to send an empty lorry to, actually has a return load! That has happened to me many times, despite my asking them to phone the other depot!

The whole transport management from the top to the traffic clerks needs to be binned, and commercially minded people who have spent at least two years in the commercial world, and who can read a truckers atlas put in their place. Suddenly you would find no end of return loads being arranged (about a third of RMG trucks in my experience are running empty at any one time). There would be no over lapping runs where two vehicles from different depots were doing the same job!

RMG could be a very powerful business, it's just needs to rid itself of the civil servants and put actual commercial transport operators in their place. And yes I could do a way better job than the current crew, and very happy to do it wage free but, for 5% of the savings I would make!

[tubbs64] 23/3/2020 10:28

Hi Chancer.Finished selling your stockpile of loo roll on ebay at a tenner a roll have you?

[tubbs64] 23/3/2020 10:21

I don't know how you haven't been head hunted to be the head of Logistics Lefrene. It must be that all the management and staff of RM are stupid, lazy, incompetent or luddites. ...... OR it could be that you are not as clever as you obviously think you are and as an agency worker you views are at best irrelevant. Just do the job they pay you to do which presumably is driving and stop trying to run the company because if you were good enough to do it you would already be running it...... and your not.

[lefrene] 23/3/2020 10:05

This could be a highly profitable business if only it were allowed to operate as an actual business instead of a being politically restrained, and having the mind set of the Civil Service. Stop delivering other carriers mail at a loss, take a proper charge for it, the trunking is cheap it's the 'final mile' that is so very expensive. Stop delivering every day, every other day would be fine for the vast majority except perhaps businesses. Country areas twice a week would be ok. Decades ago my self-employed postman in France could decide when it was worth his while to make deliveries, but was obliged to deliver twice a week, it worked perfectly well.

Perhaps this health scare will provide the excuse to re-set the postal conditions. It would save a lot of mileage/man hours, and be 'greener' to boot.

Gazza270, perhaps you have not been inside the RMG world? A few years back there were 'drivers' who had been on the same route for over 20 years, and would refuse to drive anywhere else. That did change about a decade ago when Euro regs were imposed on RMG as opposed to 'domestic rules'. A lot of drivers were paid off as they couldn't/wouldn't cope, as the new rules meant they would have to be more flexible and drive more routes. Most of those that remained were more competent, but I did find myself one day taking a bloke into London who had already been with an RMG driver for three days, and still couldn't find his way. I drew him a map with land marks to look out for at places where he would have to change roads. That worked very well, but the management in RMG never thought of doing such a simple thing, they'd rather waste money on sending an unnecessary extra driver along for a day/several days!

[tubbs64] 23/3/2020 10:02

How did RM survived before you turned up to sort all there problems out Lefrene? RM got along fine before you came along and they will get along fine long after they have got ridden of you.Typical agency worker.

[mickinvest] 23/3/2020 09:37

Probably the end of 6 day deliveries for letters, think the USO was only relevant as long as RMG made a profit from memory so possible some expect an announcement.

[badg] 23/3/2020 09:32

Never thought I'd see this... red across the board with terrible falls and we are up! What don't I know?

[gazza270667] 23/3/2020 09:27

What complete and utter rubbish.....

[lefrene] 22/3/2020 22:48

Badg, a lot of the RMG artics are 16'2" tall and unsuitable for loading at food distribution depots which tend to have doors up to 15'. Also RMG drivers are not very good at finding their way around, they usually get sent with somebody else for a week to learn a new route! I know I've piloted a few of their drivers, and also gone out and rescued a few who have been directed off motorways due to closures, and then parked up in the first available place and phoned in to be recued, as they don't know where they are going and are too frightened and incompetent to carry on!

The catering industry has just been shut down, that means that whole commercial food distribution industry (such as Brake Brothers) is idle. OK they mostly only have 10 tonners, but their drivers will know where they are going, and the trucks will fit in all the distribution centres. All the army are going to do is get in the way of the commercial operators who know what they are doing. But it will look good for political purposes.

At this time of year there's no shortage of units and trailers, it's simply a case that government policies have driven drivers off the road, with IR35 being the latest nail in the coffin!

[badg] 22/3/2020 22:27

With a national transportation hub/network; why can't they think of teaming up with a food retailer to assist with the food/other deliveries. A huge national help and surely a great business opportunity. Perhaps I'm naive?!

[srpactive] 19/3/2020 15:08

Looking better, the dow I feel will move higher from here on.

If the unions are not too silly, rmg should do well over the lockdown period
and due to this have the funds for the 13% dividend. The shareholders being
the workforce will have the dividends plus the payrise and any government help.

dyor

[srpactive] 19/3/2020 12:56

RMG could benefit from all this chaos now, as the government will
trust them in crisis.

dyor

[tubbs64] 18/3/2020 13:43

Hi Chancer.Yes I am a shareholder.I take it you are selling toilet rolls on ebay at £10 a roll?....... given that everything is an opportunity to you.

[encarter] 18/3/2020 12:13

RM recruiting agency also but unfortunately they have to still pay all the posties that are self isolating.

[creditcrunchies] 18/3/2020 11:46

This is RMG time to shine: Amazon to recruit 100,000 extra workers to cope with coronavirus-induced online shopping surge

[tubbs64] 18/3/2020 11:26

What a bitter person you sound Chancer. Did it not occur to you that alot of postmen and woman still see RM as a public service so will not be keen to take industrial action during this national emergency. Of course, they have to support their union but a significant proportion would not be happy with taking industrial action now. The union recognises that. Let's see how RM respond..... will they be conciliatory or as most staff fear just carry on with their hard nosed, abrasive and provocative approach.