Royal Mail has resumed all international deliveries for parcels and letters which had been disrupted by a cyber attack in early January.
(Bloomberg) — Royal Mail has resumed all international deliveries for parcels and letters which had been disrupted by a cyber attack in early January.
Customers will now be able to send packages abroad in 11,500 Post Office branches for the first time in six weeks. A limited service for letter deliveries restarted on Jan. 19 but parcels could not be sent in person until Tuesday.
Royal Mail was privatized a decade ago and forms part of International Distributions Services Plc, while the Post Office is a separate organization.
“Postmasters have been the innocent victims of this faceless crime, unable to support businesses and consumers wishing to use their expertise to get parcels sent abroad,” said Neill O’Sullivan, a managing director at the Post Office. “For many small businesses, Post Offices are an integral part of their business set-up.”
The Post Office said in a statement that employees who missed out on income due to the disruption would get “additional remuneration” for handling international items, as well as an extra commission for all Royal Mail international labels sold in branches during February and March.
Strikes
Royal Mail is also in the midst of mass industrial action with postal workers voting last week for another six months of strikes. Unions accuse bosses of trying to turn it into a gig economy-style business, while management insists it has to modernize to compete in the global parcels market.
Chief Executive Officer Simon Thompson is expected to appear in front of a parliamentary committee on Wednesday after a previous appearance left the panel unconvinced by his answers to questions about working conditions and allegations the company prioritizes packages over letters.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.