EXCLUSIVE: ‘We begged them to hire more staff’ — Kirkwall Post Office ex-employee speaks out after shock shutdown

Staff discontent leading up to the abrupt closure of Orkney’s largest post office has been alleged, this week, as customers are left high and dry.

Relocation plans for Kirkwall Post Office have also emerged after it was shut up at short notice on Monday, announced only through a handwritten note displayed in the window.

An exodus of staff from the Junction Road branch, which was franchised to Universal Office Equipment (UOE) last November, is said to be behind the sudden closure. 

As a town of 7,000 people grapples with the prospect of being left with limited services at a cornershop branch for the foreseeable, a former staff member has spoken out about poor working conditions.

Chloe Wylie joined the branch in February, and in the six months before she handed in her notice, she claims to have witnessed a refusal to properly staff the branch or allow reasonable overtime due to short staff, as well as frequent abuse by customers.

“The first lass to leave just went to uni, and the company was refusing to hire more people to replace her — even though we begged,” the 21-year-old told The Orcadian on Tuesday.

Miss Wylie believes that her own decision to quit the branch led to a “domino effect” resulting in the “staffing struggles” that the Post Office has confirmed are behind Monday’s short-notice shutdown.

Communication by management was so poor, she claims, that staff felt they were being given “false hope” when it came to rumours that the branch may be taken over by another operator as an “excuse” for why the branch was poorly stocked.

“We got a lot of abuse for [the lack of stock], which was very frustrating,” Miss Wylie told the newspaper, adding that customer confusion between the Post Office and Royal Mail, which are two separate entities, also led to ire from customers. 

“We were all just quite unhappy working there.”

The former staff member claims that communication issues between managers and branch staff were in such dire straits that she had to push to have her resignation notice acknowledged.

“I emailed my notice to a cluster manager south on August 24, and it took them two weeks and three emails to acknowledge it, which is what pushed me to put it into immediate effect, because I was just so tired of them.”

These revelations come as Orkney politicians demand answers over the shock shut up. 

Branded an “outrage” by Northern Isles MP Alistair Carmichael, whatever its “exact cause or intended outcome”, for the closure to be announced through a note in the window is “an utter insult to the community,” said Mr Carmichael. 

His colleague, Liam McArthur MSP, slammed not only the closure but subsequent confirmation of plans to relocate the branch. 

“If reports are true, the lack of any kind of notice or consultation with the community is completely unacceptable, and flies in the face of assurances provided by Post Office leadership about the manner in which the future of the branch would be handled,” said Mr McArthur, who said he and Mr Carmichael will be demanding answers from both Post Office and Universal Office Equipment as a “matter of urgency”. 

In an official statement on Monday evening, Post Office confirmed that it does not have a reopening date for the branch at this stage.

In the meantime, customers have been advised to instead use “alternative” branches, with the Post Office directing Kirkwall customers in particular to Papdale Stores, and — to astonishment, ridicule and confusion — its branch in Shapinsay.

While Thomas Sinclair’s shop in the island’s Balfour village had yet to be inundated with customers coming over to Shapinsay to use its Post Office services on Tuesday, the owner of the town’s only other Post Office outlet is concerned by the abrupt change.

Betty Muir, who took over Papdale Stores in July, has criticised the lack of any notice of the impending closure.

She said that her staff had noticed that the Post Office counter had been “like Christmas” on Monday. The first they had learned of the Junction Road team shutting up shop was when The Orcadian broke the story that afternoon. 

Mrs Muir is concerned about the scale of additional traffic that may come their way for who knows how long. 

“At the end of the day, we are just a shop with a little post office at the side,” she said, adding that certain services are not available in her store — including passports and vehicle licensing and registration.

“We can only cope with so much.” 

Papdale Stores is particularly popular with pupils from the nearby Kirkwall Grammar School at lunchtime, and Mrs Muir has appealed to customers to keep this in mind when choosing what time to visit for Post Office services. 

Meanwhile, Argo’s Bakery in Stromness has appealed for additional staff in the wake of the Kirkwall shutdown, citing a previous uptick in demand during its temporary closure earlier this year.

It is understood that town centre business owners were some of the most frequent customers at Kirkwall Post Office. 

This includes Martin Findlay of Findlay’s Photo Shop, who believes he may have been one of the final customers before the hatches were battened down.

Mr Findlay said that there was “no indication” when he visited the branch on Monday, as he does most days, that it was about to close until further notice.

The nature of his work means that he frequently sends treasured one-of-a-kind recordings on film and tape by special delivery. He claims that, during a decade in business, the first time this has gone awry was last month, when a parcel labelling issue caused his delivery to be sent to the wrong address entirely. 

“It’s just been sad to see the decline,” said Mr Findlay, who believes that having a convenient town centre branch is vital for businesses. 

Confirming the closure on Monday, a Post Office spokeswoman said: “Kirkwall Post Office is experiencing staffing difficulties. 

“Regrettably, the branch has had to temporarily close. 

“We do not have a re-opening date at this stage. We are currently making alternative arrangements for parcels currently inside the branch to be collected by the relevant courier companies.

“We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience caused by this unplanned closure. In the interim an alternative branch includes Papdale and Balfour.

“In the longer term, there are plans to modernise the branch at a new location, and we expect to be able to share further details later this year.”

When The Orcadian sought clarification on the reference to the “Balfour” branch, the spokewoman added: “Papdale is the closest alternative. 

“The next closest is Balfour, but appreciate that this is a ferry journey away, making it more difficult to reach.”

Responding to the concerns raised by Miss Wylie, the Post Office released the following statement on Tuesday: “We want to thank UOE for helping us to operate this branch on a temporary basis to provide continuity of service to the residents, businesses and tourists in Orkney since last November. 

“There have been staffing difficulties over a long period of time and now, regrettably, the branch has had to temporarily close.

“We are concerned at reports there may have been frequent abuse of the staff that had been working at the branch and reiterate that any abuse of staff who are providing essential services is unacceptable.

“There are plans to modernise the branch at a new location and we expect to be able to share further details later this year.”