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How Royal Mail provided a first class redundancy scheme

The challenge

As a result of a change programme within Royal Mail, certain positions within the organisation had become redundant.

Royal Mail has a 'People Change Network', whereby advisers provide guidance to people who have been affected by organisational change. One of the advisers' key roles is to ensure these employees fully understand the support mechanisms available to them, which are intended to ease the transition of re-entering the employment market.

The solution

In addition to various support initiatives such as outplacement services and training grants, Royal Mail was interested in setting up a 'Work Guarantee Scheme' as a way for staff who had opted for redundancy to gain new skills and experience in different types of employment. Royal Mail approached Manpower, which first pioneered this concept five years ago, to discuss its needs.

Based on Royal Mail's specific requirements, Manpower devised a tailor-made Work Guarantee Scheme for the organisation. Using its links to many different client companies, its skill assessments and training packages, Manpower offers scheme members a range of temporary assignments over a twelve month period.

As a safeguard, Royal Mail arranged for a guaranteed sum of money to be paid to members, at the end of the scheme, if earnings did not equal or exceed this amount.

The benefits

All Royal Mail staff who decided to join the scheme have benefited from successful results, with not one member requiring the 'back up' guaranteed sum. This smooth transition, meanwhile, has helped Royal Mail management to focus on quick restoration of normal productivity.

"We would only want to run this type of scheme with a company like Manpower, as they are a large corporation backed by a good reputation," says Mark Heinau, Evaluation Manager for the People Strand at Royal Mail. "Manpower has a national network and offers training. This enables us to provide genuine opportunities for staff who have opted for redundancy.

The scheme has really helped people to develop other skills they have. Many people taking redundancy have worked for Royal Mail for many years and were therefore unaware of other jobs they could do."

Following the twelve month scheme period, members who have not already found a permanent job may be invited to continue to work with Manpower. Approximately 30% of Manpower temporary staff eventually take up permanent employment with a Manpower client.

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