There has been calls from Licensees to close our LPOs for a day of mourning at the possible loss of the CEO Christine Holgate.

While LPOG is fully supportive of action to raise our voice, we have long resisted the call for strike, or closing our doors, throughout our years of lobbying for improved payments because it will cost us to close, and it is our customers who are ultimately impacted. 

This situation is quite different from a protracted payment dispute, having far more urgency to the need for action, but ultimately, it will have the same impact on our customers and our communities if we choose to close our doors in protest.

Our EGM Nicole Sheffield has assured us that the viability of our businesses will continue to be considered in management decisions going forward, with or without Christine Holgate. Nicole Sheffield has been an outstanding success for the retail side of the business and she knows how important our survival is to us. So we have to trust that she will have our backs in this. She has been a power house for us in our payments, and business over all.

We have also received an email from Christine who very much appreciates our support, and said 

Thank you enormously for your support, but Please Stay Open

So when the 2 people who have made such a difference to our outcomes since they have been in the job, ask us to stay open in support of the customers and our Brand it seems we should listen to that for the time being. 

We can hope good judgement prevails, and this nonsense is over.

We will revisit action if that does not happen.

MEDIA RELEASE

LICENSED POST OFFICE GROUP ENDORSES AUSTRALIA POST LEADERSHIP

THE organisation representing the interests of more than 2,850 licensees of Australian Post's Licensed Post Office network has today pledged its strong support for Australia Post management and chief executive Christine Holgate.

In a letter sent to members of the Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee, executive director of the Licensed Post Office Group (LPOG) Angela Cramp endorsed Ms Holgate and the current Australia Post management for their commitment to growing the business and supporting essential reform.

“Christine Holgate is a unique leader that has breathed life back into Australia Post, and has brought her experience and expertise to this business to provide Australia with a viable, fit for purpose postal service,” Ms Cramp said. “She is dedicated, dynamic and determined that this business can grow.”

In light of the most astonishing events of the past few days we have taken the decision to cancel this anticipated presentation. We certainly hope that our CEO is back in place by then, but as of today Christine is still on gardening leave so it seems appropriate to let events settle and perhaps look to inviting Christine and Nicole to a zoom presentation early in the new year. I think the standard line we get so often, which I shall use now, is -

thanks for your understanding!

LPOG has partnered with a small business consortium manufacturing Australian washable, reusable face masks to meet the demands of our customers in the coming months, or years if we are unlucky. These masks are being manufactured by struggling small manufacturing businesses, in several different states, and just like us, they would benefit greatly from our support by buying, and selling Australian manufactured products, to help them survive through to the end of this pandemic, and hopefully beyond. LPOG members will receive a discounted rate for the packs, and we have been able to make this availbe via the central billing payment system, which will add this invoice to your Australia Post stock account if you select that option.

   Mask order form.pdf 

https://www.covidmasksaustralia.com/

Currently a random selection of 50 Licensees across Australia are being audited, for an on behalf of Australia Post by PKF, in an endeavour to discover if the entire LPO network might have systemic issues with compliance of the current workplace obligations under the 2017 Vulnerable Workers Act.

The ARA and NRA each requested authorisation to enable their tenant members who have been adversely affected by the COVID‑19 pandemic to collectively negotiate with landlords regarding the support to be provided to tenants by landlords. 

This authorisation has now been approved by the ACCC. If you are in need of support in this situation contact the ARA on 1300 368 041 to discuss your options.

Could be you forgot to renew your LPOG membership, so check that you did remember to note your membership reference if you made a direct deposit. We have several renewals each year that just have LPOG Renewal as the reference, and we are trying to identify that a bit quicker this year. Especially for those that have also paid their Public Liability Insurance in that payment.

UPDATE FOR MELBOURNE AND SOME VICTORIAN RETAIL OUTLETS: AP have just been advised that the 2/3rds staffing rule will impact DC and sorting facilities, so that will mean PO Box mail will be delayed into Melb LPOs, and probably further down the line to most Victorian outlets tomorrow morning.

A notice is just about to be loaded up on POP for LPOs in Victoria trading in the lockdown stage 4 area/state to authorise you and your employees to travel to and from work. 

Read the info provided and print off the work permit form for each staff member and Licensees. These work permits will have to be with you when travelling for work purposes.

Stay safe everyone and hopefully it will not be necessary for the rest of the states to use these permits, if we are lucky.

A message from Christine