[Gllug] Someone with a postcode database do me a favour please? Suspicious repeated disappearance of computer deliveries...

[M.J. Smith]

Hi there,

I've worked for various delivery companies and the calibre of staff in many of them has definitely gone down.  Nowadays it's definitely not old white working-class at all; it's mostly new immigrants and many of them don't speak good English.  Definitely I've found Parcelforce in south London (since closed) and Lynx (now part of UPS) in both Paddington and their new home of Kentish Town to be the most frustrating to work with.  The north London Parcelforce depot I worked at for a while in 2002 or so was pretty good to work in IIRC.


Generally, I agree with your assessment of how these kinds of jobs have lost status over the past decade or two.  In the case of the postal service, it has a lot to do with the internet and the fact that most people don't need to post letters anymore; they just email (or fax).  With other jobs, I think the fall from grace of the unions has much to do with it - there's not the pride in being "a worker" anymore.

However, I would not use either of the companies I mentioned to send anything valuable.

Regards,

Matt Smith


----- Original Message ----
From: M.Blackmore <mblackmore at oxlug.org>
To: Greater London Linux User Group <gllug at gllug.org.uk>
Sent: Saturday, 24 May, 2008 7:28:36 PM
Subject: [Gllug] Someone with a postcode database do me a favour please? Suspicious repeated disappearance of computer deliveries...

I've had 4 computers go walkabouts with Parcelforce - and this isn't the first time. Frankly I'm getting suspicious about deliveries, and this time I'm not letting it rest and doing a bit of sleuthing.

At present there is a large unnaccounted for box in the local Parcelforce depot with the relevant postcode on it but they wouldn't (for obvious data protection reasons) tell me which house number or name is upon it. I know a few of the houses and inhabitants names but they didn't tally (they said) and wouldn't reveal more.

If someone has access to a postcode checker could they be so kind as to tell me the range of house numbers covered by the OX7 3QA postcode? And ideally any names they could associate with those.

Obviously reply off list!!!

If this sort of thing can be accessed publically, perhaps someone could point me in the right direction. This is private not business stuff, I might add.

Many thanks if someone can assist with this OT request. If someone is messing about in Parcelforce or in collusion then its for the benefits of society as a whole if we can help pin them down. 

I remember the days when post office employees where pretty intrinsically trustworthy bunch (and did Xmas postie work for some 8 or 9 years as a lad and student). Days when it was a fairly decent job for working class blokes compared to many other options, especially the sort who didn't like a boss on their back all the time, liked to organise their own work, and didn't mind being outdoors getting exercise - in fact it was quite a well sought after job for working class men in the 1960s who weren't that bothered about high pay due to the freedoms and exercise AND the benefit of being able to get the job done and knock off for the day as soon as one could if one was a fast sorter and quick on your feet - quite a privilege in many respects being able to get 8 hours pay for 4-5 hours work for some real quick hard workers! 

And misdeliveries were not tolerated either, so slapdash work seldom occurred despite some people being amazingly speedy. One chap in my small town sorting office could sort and deliver a difficult round in 3.5 hours that I never managed to do under 5.5, with me 30 years younger and puffing like a steam engine - no idea how he did it to my frustration (and that was during the Xmas rush too).

Nowadays it seems postal work is at the bottom of the employment heap and attracts far too many staff to match its modern degraded status :-(

-- 

http://www.blogistan.co.uk/blog/


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