The Post Office in Tipperary town is going to have a change in management but An Post says it’s not downgrading the local branch.
An Post has announced that it is looking for an independent contractor to take over running it in the next few months.
Most of the 900 post offices in the country are run in this way, apart from 40 of the bigger branches that are still run by the company itself.
Public Affairs Manager Angus Laverty is insisting the proposed change it is not a downgrading of the local site:
”Absolutely not. It’s purely a change in the way that the post office is run. Same post office, same look and feel, same customer care, same range of services.
”It remains no difference at all to customers. The only difference is the person who will actually be running the post office, formerly run by an on post manager and now to be run by an independent contractor,” he told TippFM news.
The full statement to TippFM from An Post is as follows:
In line with the ongoing transformation of the national post office network An Post has announced that its office in Tipperary town will become a contractor run post office.
Tipperary joins the mainstream of national post offices of which more than 95% of the country’s 900 plus offices which are run by contractors. Fewer than 40 post offices nationally are run directly by An Post.
The move represents a significant business opportunity for the newly appointed Postmaster. The change in business model of our post office in Tipperary will not in any way change the range or extent of the services offered by An Post. We remain committed to providing Tipperary with the highest level of services for the future.
Changing the business model of a post office, does not impact on the level or variety of services which are available to customers. Continuation of service is of key importance to An Post. All services available before the change remain available after the change. In addition, in many cases the premises and facilities available have been improved. We will continue to provide a top-class service.
An Post staff formerly employed there will take up a number of possible options, including taking up employment for the new Postmaster or being redeployed within the An Post network. It is likely that a new location for the post office will be sought by the new Postmaster.
An Post, as a commercial semi state company, has an obligation to operate in a commercial manner. In the late 1990’s we recognised the challenges that we faced in our retail business. This arose principally from greater choice being available to customers for many of our traditional services and the move to online and digital services. These included the direct transfer of funds for social welfare payments, the availability of Direct Debit and online channels for bill payments. The development of An Post banking and financial services for customers and SMEs (Small Medium Enterprises) has been a feature of the transformation of the company in recent years. Our task has always been to build a sustainable national post office network which remained relevant to the people of Ireland, both now and for the future.
Other leading post offices following the Tipperary route include Phibsboro, Rathmines and Tallaght (Dublin), Roscommon town and New Ross (Wexford) offices. Timescale for the change in Tipperary and other locations will be over the coming months.
