THESE photographs allegedly show a backlog of letters and parcels that have not been delivered by Royal Mail at a sub office in Fermanagh this week due to an issue with overtime. 
It is claimed that for the second week in a row a large quantity of mail has not been delivered to homes and businesses across the county.
“Nothing has changed, it is still an issue. Saturday’s post was delivered on Monday, and Monday’s post was delivered on Tuesday,” said one postman who asked to remain anonymous. 
In last week’s Impartial Reporter, a Royal Mail employee accused the organisation of refusing to pay him and others overtime, something it denied, and claimed that as a result deliveries have not been made on time as postmen and women reach their contracted hours.
A number of Royal Mail employees have contacted this newspaper in recent days claiming that the issue surrounding overtime and the backlog of mail in its sub offices across Fermanagh is continuing. 
The photographs provided to this newspaper by a source this week allegedly show the issue facing postal staff in just one of the company’s 10 sub offices.
Ulster Unionist Councillor Diana Armstrong claimed on Tuesday that staff have been “instructed to deliver the most overdue items before current mail and that no overtime can be worked.”
“I have grave concerns for the duress under which staff are working in certain areas. Postal workers are doing their best to clear backlogs but they are limited by contracted hours and cannot carry out their duty to deliver on time,” she said.
Councillor Armstrong claims no deliveries were made in Ballinamallard and Kesh on June 24 and staff are “still trying to catch up on accumulated mail.”
“Furthermore, my worry is that these delays will have serious implications for delivery of notification of hospital appointments, passports, business cheques, and other important mail items. Indeed Fermanagh County Show organisers have issued correspondence to sponsors which has not yet been received. 
“I have to raise questions whether this is a local management issue and call on Royal Mail to inform the public when all suspended mail items will be delivered and a regular service can be resumed,” she said. 
In response to the concerns, Royal Mail spokesperson Morag Turnbull said that following an investigation the company “can confirm that deliveries are operating as normal in Fermanagh.”
“Although we have experienced some unusually high levels of sick absence recently in Fermanagh, we put contingency plans in place quickly. We have been offering overtime when it is needed. 
“We apologise to any customers who had some disruption to their deliveries during this period. We are committed to delivering a high quality of service to all our customers in Fermanagh.
“We have been in contact with Councillor Armstrong to offer her more detail on our operations and reassurance that our deliveries are running as normal,” she said.