Royal Mail has delayed the final phase of its second-class postal reforms until January, as mounting pressure over missed delivery targets threatens to overshadow the company’s efforts to overhaul its struggling service.
The group has agreed with the Communication Workers Union to postpone the rollout at the remaining 107 delivery offices until January 11, allowing staff to concentrate on the Christmas rush.
The decision pushes back its ambition to introduce the new delivery model across all 1,200 offices by the end of the year.
The reforms, which have already been implemented at nearly 1,100 offices, will see second-class post delivered on alternate weekdays, with Saturday second-class deliveries scrapped.
Royal Mail said the delay was a “pragmatic approach” intended to maintain progress on what it described as one of the biggest operational changes in its history while protecting the festive delivery operation.
But the postponement comes as the postal operator faces growing scrutiny over its performance. Last week, Prime Minister Andy Burnham described the service as “unacceptable for far too long” and warned that the Government would consider “further measures” unless Royal Mail produced a swift plan to restore standards.
The company missed its regulatory targets again in the first quarter. It delivered 85 per cent of first-class mail the next day and 91.4 per cent of second-class post within three working days, falling short of Ofcom’s respective targets of 90 per cent and 95 per cent.
Royal Mail argues that performance is improving. Chief executive Alistair Cochrane said first-class quality of service had risen by 9 per cent, while offices operating under the new model delivered to about 95 per cent of addresses each day on average, compared with 88 per cent before the rollout.
“There is still more to do,” Cochrane said, adding that the company was confident the new model would support more reliable and sustainable deliveries.
The union, however, has raised broader concerns about the company’s future. Earlier this month, the Communication Workers Union called for an emergency summit, warning that Royal Mail was “on the brink of collapse”.
The company is also preparing to cut 2,500 head-office and support roles, representing about 2 per cent of its overall workforce. Frontline postal workers are excluded from the proposed restructuring.
Meanwhile, Royal Mail plans to recruit 22,000 temporary workers to help transport, sort and deliver the additional mail expected over Christmas. It has also pledged £500 million over five years to improve service quality.
The January delay gives Royal Mail more time to manage the festive peak, but leaves the company facing a difficult test: demonstrating that its sweeping reforms can translate into consistently better deliveries while political scrutiny and concerns over its long-term future intensify.
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