Postal staff mark end of an era as centre shuts (From The Oxford Times)
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Postal staff mark end of an era as centre shuts
7:06pm Sunday 28th June 2009 in
POSTAL workers gathered to mark the end of an era as the Cowley Mail Centre closed its doors for good.
There was bitterness on the part of union leaders, as well as a feeling of uncertainty among workers now joining the ranks of the Oxford unemployed.
Derek Williams, 45, from Swinburne Road, Oxford, worked at the centre for 25 years and accepted redundancy rather than the chance to work at a new mail centre in Swindon, which will now be responsible for sorting Oxford’s mail.
He said: “I’m very sad, not so much for myself, but for the people I have worked with.
“I’m hoping to start my own carpentry business, so for me it’s an opportunity. Otherwise I would have been at the centre until I retired.”
Leon Price, 34, of Normandy Crescent, Oxford, said: “I’m leaving because going to Swindon was not an option for me as I have a young family and I would be getting back too late. I’m looking at the local jobs market but there is not much out there. I have enough money to last a couple of months, but if I don’t find something it won’t be a very good Christmas.
“The main thing I’m going to miss is the fact that I was working somewhere people cared and I feel privileged to have worked with them. I don’t think I will find anywhere else like it.”
The history of the Royal Mail in Oxford stretches back to 1635 with the sorting office established in Becket Street in 1920, before moving to the Oxford Business Park North 10 years ago.
In recent years there have been several strikes and Oxford built up a reputation as a hotbed of union activity.
A total of 450 jobs have gone at the centre with about 50 taking jobs in Swindon, while 50 more have become postmen.
Comments(16)
Sophia
says...
7:52pm Sun 28 Jun 09
Andrew:Oxford
says...
10:47pm Sun 28 Jun 09
Gunslinger
says...
9:33am Mon 29 Jun 09
Andrew:Oxford wrote:City Council maybe - do us all a favour and get them shut down too within the year!
Who is Bob going to work for next?
erik256
says...
9:35am Mon 29 Jun 09
Gunslinger wrote:im guessing since bob has marked himself as a union hothed, (hopefully) nobody will touch him with a bargepole! that man has done more to damage postal services in oxfordshire than any of the management has ever done.
Andrew:Oxford wrote: Who is Bob going to work for next?City Council maybe - do us all a favour and get them shut down too within the year!
Fat boy
says...
1:46pm Mon 29 Jun 09
Good riddance Mr Cullen. Perhaps those "workers" who were so keen to follow you out on strike time and time again over the tiniest petty thing will now think about how daft they were to believe a word you said - just like the miners and their beloved King Arthur.
lantwo
says...
2:01pm Mon 29 Jun 09
How come the new sorting centre at Swindon is already balloting for industrial action due bad relations and terms & conditions? Now the entire OX, RG and SN areas could be out on strike. Nice one!!
I suppose Mr Cullen will be blamed for this action too, together with the great fire of London and Swine Flu!
EB
says...
2:27pm Mon 29 Jun 09
Bob Cullen the reason that the postal service here is so bad. The guy is a die-hard striker, ex British Leyland, and just loves causing trouble.
Nothing can be worse than him and his mob, holding our businesses and the general public to ransom so they get a pay rise.
I'm glad he's gone for good.
Going_Digital
says...
2:31pm Mon 29 Jun 09
lantwo wrote:Note the word ballot there, that is how union action is supposed to work. The union take a ballot and inform the employer of their planned action in advance.
Funny that - all the fault of Mr Cullen, and none of Royal Mail?
How come the new sorting centre at Swindon is already balloting for industrial action due bad relations and terms & conditions? Now the entire OX, RG and SN areas could be out on strike. Nice one!!
I suppose Mr Cullen will be blamed for this action too, together with the great fire of London and Swine Flu!
Not the Bob Cullen lets all walk out because there is no sugar in the canteen.
lantwo
says...
2:37pm Mon 29 Jun 09
If you really think the service is so bad in Oxford - check now to see what day your mail arrives from Swindon - not what time. That is of course if they manage to sort out the industrial problems at Swindon. Perhaps people will focus on the greedy profit making, bonus collecting executives who have brought this Country and the World to the terrible state it is in.
Time will tell to see if this union busting will achieve a better service - I doubt it!
Wendle1
says...
6:04pm Mon 29 Jun 09
Ian Sternberg
says...
7:59pm Mon 29 Jun 09
Ian Sternberg .
GMB - Oxford & District Trades Union Council .
EB
says...
9:00pm Mon 29 Jun 09
Your mate Bob and your strike-happy pals have caused chaos in Oxford for years and we're so happy to see the back of you all.
I don't see how our post "service" can be any less reliable when you're all out on strike every 5 minutes.
What's that? RM run out of bog roll?
Everyone out!!
Ian Sternberg
says...
9:29pm Mon 29 Jun 09
No - it's your chums in management who have created all the demoralisation & unrest in Oxford .
Do you really think that collecting the mail in Oxford , driving it miles to Swindon for sorting and then driving it all the way back for deliveries is an efficient use of resources ? what about the effect on the environment with all that waste of fuel ?
Oxford's people will curse the day that they lost their mail centre - i hope that they remember that it was wrecked by people like you who ignored the fight to save it !
lantwo
says...
12:57am Tue 30 Jun 09
The impact is so severe that the eventual results of all this COMMERCIAL SPITE will mean an environmental, social, and logisical disaster, and a further run down in services for all customers and businesses in the Thames Valley - never mind Oxfordshire.
Alas, we can still come on here and point the finger at Bob Cullen!
The good news? Would anyone in the business of erecting tents at the new centre (Swindon), please put forward your tender in anticipation.
EB
says...
9:49am Tue 30 Jun 09
Honestly. Do you think countries like Germany would put up with their postal service striking every time someone has a minor greivence?
Bob is the ringleader, he's the bloke in the paper, standing by a BBQ when on strike, whilst the rest of us who RELY on a postal service suffer.
If you have a problem with management, sort it out rather than downing tools every time.
If RM were a true commercial venture with proper managers, this wouldn't happen - or RM would be out of business and you all out of a job.
Or maybe that's what you want?
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Postal workers gather as the centre closes
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EB says...
7:52pm Sun 28 Jun 09
Oxford will no longer be at the mercy of your strike-fast mentality.
Good riddence. I hope everyone else finds jobs!