On Wed, 12 Mar 2014 20:35:22 +0000, Roland Perry
wrote:

In message , at 20:14:29 on Wed, 12
Mar 2014, Phil Cook remarked:
SD also seems to have an informal "not before 7am", just so they don't
wake people up too early!

It has to get to the office and be processed before it can be issued to
the driver.

But even if they get it earlier, the drivers I talked to (in my PJs)
said they didn't try to deliver before 7am.

As for the rest of the deliveries, they do seem to have crept from
7.30am to noon over the last 20yrs (my anecdata).

Royal Mail went to first and second deliveries to just one some time
ago. The last letter is in theory about 14.00, which counts as
lunchtime. The first may be something like 10.30, but it will depend
where you are on the round.

So they have half the number of deliveries, and the first is a minimum
of around three hours later than before. This is why people think they
aren't getting as good a service any more.

It can depend on which end of the round the postman starts at. When
one delivery a day came in it was evident in some places that the
round was being reversed every few weeks with the result that half the
round was getting the post earlier and the other half later. For some
time now (at least with mine) the delivery time seems to be mostly
unchanging.
The apparently delayed start time possibly also gets out of paying for
working unsocial hours.

On Wed, 12 Mar 2014 22:55:26 +0000, Charles Ellson
wrote:

It can depend on which end of the round the postman starts at. When
one delivery a day came in it was evident in some places that the
round was being reversed every few weeks with the result that half the
round was getting the post earlier and the other half later. For some
time now (at least with mine) the delivery time seems to be mostly
unchanging.
The apparently delayed start time possibly also gets out of paying for
working unsocial hours.

Until about 5 years ago they were allowed to knock off early when they
finished their rounds. As a result many of them started well before
their official starting time.

"mcp" wrote in message
...

Until about 5 years ago they were allowed to knock off early when they
finished their rounds. As a result many of them started well before
their official starting time.

.... and that was the "couldn't organise a ****-up in a brewery" indication
of the management, who, by putting a stop to that practice and insisting
that a full shift was worked, at a stroke removed the customer-friendly
aspect of the postal service, because now that there was no motivation
to get the work done early, it no longer is.

"gareth" wrote:
"mcp" wrote in message
...

Until about 5 years ago they were allowed to knock off early when they
finished their rounds. As a result many of them started well before
their official starting time.

... and that was the "couldn't organise a ****-up in a brewery" indication
of the management, who, by putting a stop to that practice and insisting
that a full shift was worked, at a stroke removed the customer-friendly
aspect of the postal service, because now that there was no motivation
to get the work done early, it no longer is.

But perhaps each postie now delivers more items than before?

In message

, at 07:13:38 on Fri, 14 Mar 2014, Recliner
remarked:
But perhaps each postie now delivers more items than before?

Not to my household. I currently get an average of about two letters a
day [I don't count their 'three a day' junk mail flyer allocation].

Back in the day I'd have got about a dozen, several of which were
usefully actioned later that day, rather than the following day [it's
difficult to have a day-job and also pick up your daily post from the
doormat much after about 8am].
--
Roland Perry

Roland Perry wrote:
In message
, at 07:13:38 on Fri, 14 Mar 2014, Recliner remarked:
But perhaps each postie now delivers more items than before?

Not to my household. I currently get an average of about two letters a
day [I don't count their 'three a day' junk mail flyer allocation].

Back in the day I'd have got about a dozen, several of which were
usefully actioned later that day, rather than the following day [it's
difficult to have a day-job and also pick up your daily post from the
doormat much after about 8am].

I don't mean more letters per property, but more items delivered in total
per shift.

In message

, at 08:36:25 on Fri, 14 Mar 2014, Recliner
remarked:
But perhaps each postie now delivers more items than before?

Not to my household. I currently get an average of about two letters a
day [I don't count their 'three a day' junk mail flyer allocation].

Back in the day I'd have got about a dozen, several of which were
usefully actioned later that day, rather than the following day [it's
difficult to have a day-job and also pick up your daily post from the
doormat much after about 8am].

I don't mean more letters per property, but more items delivered in total
per shift.

If the letters are spread thinner per household, I don't see how that
could be the case.
--
Roland Perry