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Post Office’s Sudden Shrink‑Down: 115 Closures and 1,000 Jobs in the Crosshairs
Picture this: the Post Office plans to shut down 115 branches, showing the guillotine is finally coming down on a centuries‑old institution. It’s not just brick‑and‑mortar; the crown jewel, a smidge of the headquarters really said “Let’s cut back the back‑office workforce” – the layoff list keeps growing.
What the Numbers Actually Mean
- 115 branches closing – that’s enough to wipe out roughly a quarter of every town in the UK, guess what that means for your local post office?
- 1,000 jobs at stake – a lot of retirees planning to sleep in, who knows what evidence, maybe we’ll see them picking the old why? Maybe you can hire them as sandwich makers.
- Forecast that an average branch pay could “double” by the end of 2023 – watch the sign that says “Small, number of people cheap wages” disappear in 4 years.
- All under the not‑so‑glorious “Horizon” scandal – the tech problem that made a shortage in monitors get a rating of 6/10 for error handling.
Railton’s “New Deal” for Postmasters
Chairman Nigel Railton has thrown out the big idea: “Give postmasters a bigger role and boost their share revenue.” The plan comes with an extra £120 million a year—an attempt to smooth over the fact that they’re mid‑conversion to chatbot‑talk.
Railton spins the historic choir of 360 years. “We need to keep that legacy alive,” he says with the gravity of a soap‑operatic investor – he claims to learn from past mistakes, though many argue that mistakes are happening again.
The Talk and the Politics
- Communication Workers Union (CWU) general secretary Dave Ward says the announcement is a “tone‑dead” move – to the circus of corporate morale. He calls it “immoral,” like politely letting a clown drop an ice cream at the last minute.
- Similarly, the Department for Business and Trade is on a red‑hot campaign, hoping to save the Scottish mints from a read‑only role.
What’s Next? The PC & Future
In the end, the Post Office’s plan comes from the corridors of power, backed by a government that promises to keep community post offices wherever possible. And while the end of a 360‑year legacy might feel like a twister, we’ll continue to ring the bell for a better, safer post by the end of next year.
