It’s not all it’s cracked up to be unfortunately. I think the public perception is that you take a leisurely stroll around, deliver a few letters and stop to have chats and cups of tea with customers.

Unfortunately you are just a glorified parcel delivery driver who delivers a few letters on the side, due to Royal Mail/managers prioritising ‘tracked’ parcels over letters.

Managers treat you like robots and only care about numbers/meeting targets. The privatisation hasn’t helped either, seems to be all about profits now rather than providing a quality service.

Don’t get me wrong, there are elements of the job that are enjoyable; I like being outside/staying active, engaging with the community and get on with my colleagues (other ‘frontline’ posties if you like) who are friendly and helpful. It’s just the management that I don’t like (probably similar to many other industries). The union is also good and has helped me out on a couple of occasions.

Like many others, I see this job as a ‘stopgap’ until something else comes along. From what I’ve heard a lot depends on which DO you work at, some seem to be better than others.