An Post should upgrade rural services instead of shutting them down

DESPITE the rhetoric of many politicians, there is great apprehension in rural areas over the future of post offices.

With 400 having closed in the last few years and more facing the chop, this cornerstone of the community is crumbling.

Post offices are seen as a vital part of the community, especially by the older generation.

Not only do people go to their post office to avail of the services provided, they also regard it as an important social outlet. The closure of rural post offices results in a huge void in local communities.

Senior management at An Post are earning over €100,000 a year with, in some cases, a bonus of 25%, plus other generous perks such as life and health insurance, while postmasters and postmistresses fight for a meagre wage with many earning as little as €10,000 annually. This is not just unfair — it is bad leadership and bad example.

An Post recently announced an after-tax profit of over €40 million, and also sold a 14.35-acre site near Naas, Co Kildare, for over €107m. It is time for An Post to put a fraction of this money — an estimated €4m — into automating the remaining rural post offices to enable them to offer a comprehensive range of services.

John Paul O’Shea

PRO

Save Lombardstown PO Action Committee

Laharn

Lombardstown

Mallow

Co Cork