ROYAL Mail employees in Enniskillen have had the amount of time they can spend delivering letters reduced, as they continue to be “slaughtered” with parcel deliveries across the county.

The ‘Herald understands that some postmen in the town are only allowed to deliver letters three and a half hours per day. The rest of their shift is spent sorting parcels at the depot in Enniskillen.

Residents across the county have been left incensed in recent weeks as they continue to miss out on letter deliveries, with some households only receiving mail two days of the working week.

The county’s politicians have raised the ongoing issue with Royal Mail locally and in Stormont, but despite the calls for an improved service, many households continue to report major problems.

A Belcoo man recently said that after his postman was off for a week’s holidays, he returned with a full five-days of postal deliveries, which had not been delivered in his absence.

Among the mail was two hospital letters, one with an appointment date for Saturday. The delay in delivery left the resident with little time to arrange transport to the clinic meeting in Belfast.

improvement

Raising the issue in Stormont, Fermanagh and South Tyrone MLA, Jemma Dolan, called for a major improvement made to the Royal Mail service in the county.

“These [overtime] decision will have serious repercussions for my constituents across Fermanagh, particularly in more rural communities,” Ms Dolan previously said.

“These cuts threaten the reliability of postal deliveries with delays already being felt by families, businesses and the most vulnerable in our society.

“Many depend on the timely delivery of essential items such as medical appointments and social welfare correspondence. For elderly and those living in isolated areas, post is a critical lifeline.”

Local councillor, Sheamus Greene, recently supported a motion from Fermanagh and Omagh District Council to write to Royal Mail in a plea for an improvement to the service in the county.

“I’m told there’s now a policy that letters are just delivered once a week as parcels are being prioritised. Numerous people have missed hospital and benefits appointments,” Mr Greene said.

“The Health Service doesn’t need people missing appointments, but to do so because letters haven’t arrived on time has become a huge issue, especially in rural areas.”

A senior postman explained that one of the reasons for the delay in letters being delivered is the growing demand on the local service, with employees overwhelmed by the volume of parcels.

“We’re slaughtered with Amazon stuff every day. We’re just being slaughtered,” they said.

“Amazon [warehouses] are in 90 per cent of Northern Ireland, but they’re not in Fermanagh. In the hours we’re given, we just can’t do it.”

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