Full-time Postman (3 years) mainly positive experiences
Pros
- Good pay (especially if you can get within M25) - Weekly pay (I find this one of the best things about working for RM) - Stress free (The objective is to sort the mail on a daily basis and then deliver it, once your fram is clear of mail and it's through peoples letter boxes, you can go home, nothing more than that!) - Job security - Extra wage subsidies, this is a good incentive, especially for delivering all the extra junk mail (pizza / window glazing leaflets etc) - Easy work if you are physically in good shape, and you will remain at a good physical level - Nice colleagues, lots of whom are close friends now - You can get overtime quite easily, because they seem to be understaffed - Flexible working (5 hours per day X 5 days) or longer if you want. - In good weather it is the best job in the world! - If you are working in a nice area, it's great! If you're in a bad area it can be a bit worse. - Perfect job for a student - Being a postie, you are part of the community, most people want to chat to you, and the older customers are lovely, giving you tips at Christmas etc. - This can have its drawbacks, as you are a visible employee of RM, some people who have had negative experiences will take their frustrations out on you, most the time this is easy to deal with but some can be really horrible.
Cons
- Old boy culture, many of the older generation (10-20 years+) are unwelcoming to newer colleagues. Obviously there are nicer guys too that are easier to get on with, but I just found some of the older lot outwardly rude. - The union is 99% old bully boys with an agenda of self gain, I met one who was nice, but the large majority are hard-nosed and cantankerous and just want to make things awkward for managers and newer colleagues. - When you go on the training day before you actually start the job, there's an old union boy that comes in and pitches you to sign up. He is very forceful in trying to get you to part with the Union contributions, this isn't compulsory however he tried to convince you it is and goes around the room in front of everyone to get your signature. I found this was inappropriate and doesn't give you time to digest the pros and cons. I refused and he was quite taken aback that I didn't want to study all the pros and cons and make a decision later one. Anyway, i looked into it and it just didn't appeal to me. I always found that my manager was on my side if i was injured or anything ever happened. And I actually found the union rep in the office to be obstructive. All he wanted was an easy life, to get the Union subsidy in his wage packet but work less. - Very hard to get the holiday you want. The people who are there the longest get priority and they book their holiday a year in advance, so half terms are impossible to get off. - In bad weather and in winter the work can be a bit harder - Dog bites (this old cliche rings true), my theory is the red uniform gets dogs going. All dogs seem to just bark at you when you're in uniform! - Hazards in peoples gardens when walking in, this is no fault of the company, there are so many hazards in plain view and in winter add in slippery conditions and you can injure yourself if you aren't fully paying attention - Spider season; In the leafier walks, when weather becomes damp and humid, you can walk into a lot of spider webs! This cannot be helped, and it's not a huge problem, just not ideal if spiders cream you out! - Some of the old vehicle and vans are terrible, dirty and on their last legs. - No progression available if you are a Postie. This job is great for a stop-gap, for example of you are studying. Perhaps if you have a small business and can afford to give up your mornings then this is great. Also a great retirement job, or if you just want an easy life. IF YOU ARE PROGRESSIVE AND WANT TO RISE THROUGH THE RANKS, THEN LOOK ELSEWHERE, THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE AS A POSTMAN.
