THE MAIN Post Office in Wokingham is marked for closure and a new branch will be set up in the Market Place WH Smith following plans announced yesterday.
A six-week public consultation on the plans will take place later this year.
If the decision after that consultation is still to close then it is expected that the change will take place next year.
Nine staff are affected by the proposals, although the Post Office says that those transferring to WH Smith will have their employment rights looked after in line with TUPE legislation. ALternatively, they will be offered potential redeployment within the Post Office business or a voluntary settlement.
The Royal Mail depot behind the Broad Street Post Office is unaffected by the decision as the businesses separated in 2012. Currently the Post Office leases the building from Royal Mail.
Wokingham is one of the 40 Post Offices that the Post Office are proposing, subject to consultation, to move into a WHSmith store next year – the company currently runs 135 Post Offices within their high street stores throughout the country.
The total number of Post Offices operated by WHSmith in their stores is therefore planned to rise overall to more than 200.
Post Office Network and Sales Director Roger Gale said: “WHSmith and Post Office have worked together successfully for more than a decade and our collaboration helps to secure our services on high streets for years to come.
“We’re continuing to respond to unprecedented change on high streets and in consumer trends.
By adapting to the needs of customers we’re making sure Post Offices will matter as much tomorrow as they do today, with services available when and where people want them, in convenient locations and open for longer hours, including Sundays.
“We’ve made significant changes in our network of 11,500 Post Offices over the past few years, modernising more than 7,500 branches and increasing opening hours for customers by more than 200,000 a week.
We’ve also developed our services, including the introduction of everyday banking for customers of the UK’s high street banks.
“The vast majority of the Post Office’s network of 11,500 Post Office branches, large and small, are run on a franchise or agency basis with retailers as part of thriving businesses.It makes sense to further expand this successful, sustainable way of providing Post Office services to customers.”
However, The Communications Workers Union has criticised the move.
“We condemn news this morning that 74 crown offices are to be ‘franchised’ to WHSmith with the potential loss of up to 700 jobs. This is a massive slap in the face for our members,” it said in a tweet.
Andy Furey, CWU national officer,said that the plans “equates to almost one-third of the whole network”, adding that franchising is “privatisation by the back door”.
In a statement, he said: “This union has always staunchly opposed franchising and it’s no surprise that there has been no negotiation, or even any formal engagement with the union over this matter at all.
“This is going to leave the remaining Crown offices extremely vulnerable and this union will mount the most vigorous industrial and political campaign against this catastrophic action.
“At a time when the government claims to be on the side of workers it is an outrage that it lets well rewarded jobs go from a public service and hands them straight to a second rate employer like WHSmith who will not only seek to downgrade the terms and conditions of our members but also the service they provide.”
“This is a massive slap in the face for our members who will be devastated especially as they have worked so hard and sacrificed so much to return the Crown Network to profitability.”
