THE POST OFFICE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 62, Issue 88, 24 January 1942, Page 4

THE POST OFFICE.

CURTAILMENT OF SERVICES. EFFECT OF LOSS OF MANPOWER. <4 “Over 5000 experienced officers will have been lost, to the Post Office when the men now being called up report for service with the armed forces,” said the Postmaster-General (the Hon. P. C. Webb) to-day. “The strain imposed on the Department in releasing officers has grown from month to month, and has now become so heavy that it is no longer possible to carry on without some curtailment in a number of postal, telegraph and telephone services.” The principal alterations outlined by the Minister, which, except as otherwise stated, will become effective on Monday, February 2, are: Public counters, both postal and telegraph, at many offices, will he opened later and closed earlier each day. Post office savings banks will no longer open on Friday evenings lor the acceptance of deposits. > Press telegram services *are to be modified.

Telegrams (other than urgent) for offices closing at 5 p.m. must be lodged not later than 4 p.m. to ensure delivery on day of lodgment. Luncheon and tea intervals are to be introduced in the larger telegraph operating rooms, during which only urgent traffic will be dealt with. Luncheon intervals are to be introduced also at certain of the smaller post offices, where staff economies will thereby be effected.

Commencing on April 1 next, the provision for monthly telephone accounts will be abolished, and all telephone accounts must he paid on a half-yearly basis. > Quarter-rate toll calls now provided between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. are to he discontinued, as are also “appointment” toll calls. The “householder” circular delivery service is suspended. The Minister said he appreciated the curtailments would on occasions bo a source of some inconvenience to the public, and he wanted to make it clear that before it was decided to ask the public, by accepting reduced services, to relieve the Post Office of some of its load, the Department had gone a long way in helping itself. Proof of the Department’s earnest desire to release as many men as possible was to be found in the fact that of the Post Office men called up for overseas with the armed forces, ohly a very small percentage had been appealed for, and most of these were retained for work for the armed forces. Further, notwithstanding all the additional work that the war had brought to the Post Office—oil-fuel control, impressment of motor vehicles, payment of soldiers’ allotment warrants, organising and carrying on national savings—the Post Office was carrying on to-day with 1000 fewer officers than it had in its employ at the outbreak of war. Of this smaller staff, over 1500 were temporary women, who were employed in such varying capacities as postwomen, clerical assistants, chauffeurs, lift attendants, mail-room sorters, machine printing telegraph operators, etc. Under the restricted services it would be possible to employ more women. Mr Webb said that in view of all these facts lie was sure the public would bear with the Post Office in this new step it had taken in meeting its emergency period difficulties, and he hoped that it would not be long before it would be possible to remove the restrictions. Full details of the changes as they apply to any particular post office may bo obtained from postmasters. THE ASHBURTON OFFICE. The chief changes affecting the Ashburton Post Office are: There will be no counter delivery or savings-bank business on Friday evenings. In order to ensure delivery on the day of lodgment telegrams must be lodged before 4 p.m. from Mondays to Fridays inclusive, and before 12 noon on Saturdays. The regulations regarding toll calls, telephone accounts and “householder” circulars also, of course, apply locally.