Royal Mail is gearing up for the festive season by recruiting 16,000 temporary workers to assist with the busy period. These workers will be stationed in two parcel hubs, five seasonal parcel sort centres, and 37 mail centres across the UK, with various shifts available. Local delivery offices will also offer delivery and collection positions.
The parcel hubs in Daventry and Warrington are expected to hire over 2,000 employees each, to handle a daily influx of 1.7 million parcels across both sites. Additionally, temporary space equivalent to 20 football pitches has been allocated in the five seasonal parcel sort centres located in different areas, such as Atherstone, Milton Keynes, Northampton, Daventry, and Greenford in London.
The recruited staff will assist in sorting the increasing number of online shopping orders, before these parcels are distributed to Royal Mail’s 1,200 delivery offices. Contracts for these roles will be active from late October to early January 2025, to cover significant shopping events like Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
Parcelforce Worldwide is also on a recruitment drive for additional drivers and indoor workers. Moreover, Royal Mail is expanding its fleet with almost 4,000 new vans, trucks, and trailers in preparation for the Christmas rush. Alistair Cochrane, Royal Mail’s chief operating officer, emphasised the company’s commitment to providing exceptional service during the festive period.
Cochrane stated, “Every year we pull out all the stops to deliver Christmas for our customers. It’s our busiest time of year, and we plan all year round to help ensure we deliver the best possible service for UK consumers and businesses.” The job postings are available on the Royal Mail and Parcelforce websites for interested applicants.