Overview
- An agreement announced Thursday ends Saturday delivery of second‑class letters nationwide and shifts those items to alternate weekdays.
- Royal Mail will extend the trial to 240 delivery offices, then roll the model out across about 1,200 sites by December 2026.
- Staff terms include a 4.75% pay rise for employees hired on or after December 1, 2022, a 3% rise for legacy contracts, 37‑hour contracts for new starters, and options for about 6,000 part‑time workers to increase hours, with the union set to consult members on the deal.
- For senders, second‑class post will follow set weekday patterns such as Monday–Wednesday–Friday or Tuesday–Thursday with a three‑working‑day delivery aim, while first‑class post continues Monday to Saturday under the Universal Service rules.
- Ofcom approved pilots at several dozen sites and estimates the reforms could save £250 million to £425 million a year, as Royal Mail cites letter volumes falling from about 20 billion in 2004–05 to 6.6 billion in 2023–24 and a £348 million loss last year despite stamp price rises.