The board is understood to be evaluating such proposals as restricting deliveries to every second day, in light of falling global mail volumes due as digital means of communication grow in popularity.
Auckland-based Direct Mail Solutions owner Dennis Lindsay said halving the available delivery days would “certainly” have an impact on the direct mailing industry.
“If they were to do that and still expect people to support mail as a medium for marketing then they may have to look at reducing prices, because obviously we can’t market on the days we choose,” he told ProPrint.
Peter Cleaver, owner of Tauranga-based The Mail House, noted that the changes would particularly impact service-based clients who require accounts to be sent out daily.
“As far as they are concerned, it is about cashflow – getting the account in the mail so they can get the money in the bank,” he said.
Having dealt with New Zealand Post for many years, Mr Cleaver suggested this was another example of the organisation failing in customer service.
“They seem to make a lot of decisions based on what’s right for their business and their bottom-line. They very rarely seem to consider the customer.
“With our business we ask the question ‘Is this the best decision as far as our customer is concerned?’ before we ask the question ‘Is this the best decision for our business?’.”
Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union national postal co-ordinator Anna Kenny said the organisation needed to focus on raising income rather than cutting delivery.
“The challenge for New Zealand Post is to increase the number of small, higher revenue-generating items that it delivers, such as letters, packets, small parcels and tracked items,” said Ms Kenny.
“If postal deliveries were to be cut to alternate days, hundreds of posties and mail sorters would probably lose their jobs or have their work hours reduced to make them part-time. This would also reduce the quality of service, increase unemployment and shrink the economy.”
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