June Williams wrote me an actual letter through the post from St James Dairy in Ilfracombe. Ironic…read on.

When her local post office closed she offered to assist Royal Mail with its delivery service by acting as a drop-off point for the post, an offer that was taken up. She writes: “This was especially helpful to them as the nearest post box was unable to accommodate the large amount of mail needed for this round.”

She adds: “Following a conversation with one of our friendly postmen we were advised we should receive a small gratuity for offering this service, which we received for a couple of years.”

The stipend was £50 and this continued for a few years, but then dried up a couple of years ago. When June noticed she contacted the local office to ask why. She got a pretty prompt reply: service no longer required.

“What I find most strange,” writes June, “is that there was no mention of thanks for the past service, or any mention of any payment either owing or due to myself.”

Well, no accounting for jobsworth is there? I expect the Royal Mail is a structural hierarchal nightmare; a labyrinth, a pyramid, stacked with people who act as though it’s their money. And no manners.

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