Royal Mail losing 400 postal workers a week, union warns

The Communication Workers Union has raised serious concerns regarding the stability of the UK's postal service, revealing that Royal Mail is currently losing around 400 postal workers each week. According to the union, this departure rate has escalated noticeably since the implementation of a new delivery system known as DM26 earlier this year. Prior to the rollout of these reforms, the company was experiencing an average loss of about 330 postal staff members weekly from a total workforce of roughly 83,000.

DM26 was introduced by Royal Mail as part of a broader strategy to reorganise delivery routes, boost overall performance, and secure a financially sustainable future for the historic institution. Under the new model, second-class post is scheduled to be delivered only on alternating weekdays, while first-class mail and parcels are intended to be prioritized and delivered daily. To achieve this, workers have been reorganized into groups of three, and traditional walking patterns and sorting rounds have been fundamentally altered.

Despite these operational redesigns, the CWU asserts that the system is failing to function effectively in hundreds of delivery offices across the United Kingdom. Numerous postal workers who spoke anonymously to media outlets described a deeply troubled workplace, warning of a potential nightmare ahead for customers during the upcoming festive season. Staff members highlighted ongoing issues with sorting procedures, claiming that administrative burdens and the rigid separation of mail categories are leading to massive delays and wasted time.

Workers in various regions have reported that letters are frequently left behind for weeks at a time while carriers attempt to cope with surging parcel volumes. One employee in the West Midlands noted that they left entirely without first-class mail on a recent shift because their route had fallen so far behind schedule. Furthermore, objective tracking conducted by several postal workers revealed that daily step counts have increased by up to a third following the switchover, often exceeding 25,000 steps per day as workloads intensify under the new schedules.

In response to the growing criticism, a Royal Mail spokesperson maintained that the company continuously works to ensure all mail types, including both letters and parcels, are delivered on schedule. Management views the efficiency plans as a necessary adaptation to modern commercial realities, where packet deliveries dominate the postal landscape. Nevertheless, the combination of rising staff departures and increased physical demands continues to fuel anxiety among employees.

The resignation of experienced staff members, such as veteran postman Bryn Dymott, underscores the deepening human cost of these structural changes. After nine years of service, Dymott left his position, citing a chaotic environment and a fear of facing another unmanageable Christmas season without adequate support systems. As the union calls for urgent operational reviews, the pressure mounts on Royal Mail leadership to address staff retention and delivery backlogs before peak holiday demand hits the network.