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Royal Mail set to cut 2,000 management jobs Royal Mail set to cut 2,000 management jobs
(32 minutes later)
Royal Mail is to cut 2,000 management jobs, about a fifth of its managers, as it struggles to deal with the effects of the coronavirus crisis.Royal Mail is to cut 2,000 management jobs, about a fifth of its managers, as it struggles to deal with the effects of the coronavirus crisis.
The postal service was already facing challenges before the pandemic.The postal service was already facing challenges before the pandemic.
The company said the coronavirus outbreak had accelerated the trends of more parcels and fewer letters being sent.The company said the coronavirus outbreak had accelerated the trends of more parcels and fewer letters being sent.
Royal Mail said it had not adapted quickly enough to that change in the market.Royal Mail said it had not adapted quickly enough to that change in the market.
The job cuts will mainly fall on so-called "back-office" roles, including finance, commercial and IT.The job cuts will mainly fall on so-called "back-office" roles, including finance, commercial and IT.
Royal Mail currently has about 9,700 managers, and the job losses will hit the most senior roles hardest, with half of them set to go.Royal Mail currently has about 9,700 managers, and the job losses will hit the most senior roles hardest, with half of them set to go.
Frontline postal staff are unlikely to be affected because Royal Mail needs to preserve "quality of service", a spokesman said.Frontline postal staff are unlikely to be affected because Royal Mail needs to preserve "quality of service", a spokesman said.
Royal Mail's cull of middle managers - one fifth of the near-10,000 total - is a warm-up for a much tougher set of negotiations with front line staff.
The company has had a fractious relationship with its workforce and the Communication Workers' Union for several years, and its attempts to change terms and conditions, including pension arrangements, have been fraught with difficulty.
Chairman Keith Williams, who is standing in as chief executive after the abrupt departure of Rico Back last month, is blunt about the need for change, saying the company had "not adapted quickly enough to the changes in our marketplace of more parcels and fewer letters".
That succinct diagnosis could have been written at any point in the last decade, and it is perhaps slightly surprising that, after more than a decade of organisational reshuffles, the company still has 10,000 people in management roles.
The job cuts are still subject to consultation. The bigger battle, with the CWU, still awaits.
The business has faced challenges for a number of years, and former chief executive Rico Back made a surprise exit from the business in May.The business has faced challenges for a number of years, and former chief executive Rico Back made a surprise exit from the business in May.
Royal Mail said that the planned job cuts, which it wants to make by March 2021, would save £130m on "people costs".Royal Mail said that the planned job cuts, which it wants to make by March 2021, would save £130m on "people costs".
It did not pay a dividend to shareholders in 2020, and said in a statement to investors on Thursday that it would not pay a dividend in 2021 either.It did not pay a dividend to shareholders in 2020, and said in a statement to investors on Thursday that it would not pay a dividend in 2021 either.
In the year to March 2020 it made a profit before tax of £180m, down from £241m the year before.In the year to March 2020 it made a profit before tax of £180m, down from £241m the year before.
The coronavirus crisis has caused job losses in a number of industries in the UK so far.
The aviation industry has been hit particularly hard. On Wednesday, airport ground handling giant Swissport announced it would halve its UK workforce.