Royal Mail owner says it cannot rule out job cuts after £120m Budget hit

The radical down Royal Mail has warned it cannot regularisation retired occupation cuts oregon terms hikes successful the look of a £120 cardinal deed from the autumn Budget nationalist security changes.

Martin Seidenberg, main enforcement of genitor steadfast International Distribution Services (IDS), said measures from Rachel Reeves’ maiden Budget past period volition “hit america harder compared to our competitors”.

The steadfast said a £134 cardinal write-down linked to the nationalist security summation has stopped it returning to nett for the past six months.

The company, which employs astir 130,000 workers successful the UK, said the leap successful costs means that reforms to its cosmopolitan work obligations – which presently requires it to marque first-class deliveries six days a week – are “more urgent”.

Anything that would interaction our radical would beryllium past resort

Martin Seidenberg, main enforcement of IDS

The Chancellor revealed a £25.7 cardinal alteration to employers’ nationalist security contributions (NICs) successful the Budget, which would summation the complaint of the taxation and trim the threshold astatine which firms indispensable pay.

It is the latest large concern to caution that workers and customers could look an interaction from the emergence successful concern taxes, which besides comes alongside a emergence successful the nationalist surviving wage.

Mr Seidenberg said: “We are seeing rather a important load from the nationalist security increase.

“We are looking astatine a clump of measures but it is excessively aboriginal to accidental what we volition do. They volition beryllium astir pricing, outgo efficiencies and different ways we tin determination forward.”

When asked whether this could pb to occupation losses, helium said it was “too aboriginal to say” but would not regularisation it out.

“Anything that would interaction our radical would beryllium past edifice but we are moving this through,” helium added.

The brag said the institution – which agreed a takeover woody earlier this twelvemonth – could look astatine expanding automation successful bid to assistance it code the summation successful its outgo burden.

Mr Seidenberg said the emergence successful its costs “increases the need” for work reform, with the institution hoping for a determination from regulator Ofcom of a reappraisal successful its cosmopolitan work obligations (USO) by aboriginal adjacent year.

In September, Ofcom said it is considering allowing Royal Mail to ditch Saturday deliveries for 2nd people letters arsenic portion of the consultation.

It came arsenic IDS improved its profitability implicit the past half-year and hailed advancement successful its large translation plan.

The institution has undergone a large overhaul which saw it axe thousands of jobs from 2022 arsenic Royal Mail was impacted by concern action.

It besides comes arsenic IDS awaits support implicit its projected £3.57 cardinal takeover by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky.

The institution struck the arguable woody successful May but the determination is present being reviewed by the Government nether the National Security and Investment Act.

On Thursday, IDS reported an adjusted operating nett of £61 cardinal for the 26 weeks to September 29, up from a £169 cardinal nonaccomplishment a twelvemonth earlier.

However, it made an £87 cardinal nonaccomplishment erstwhile write-downs were taken into account.

It besides revealed that revenues accrued by 8.2% to £6.34 cardinal for the half-year.

This was supported by 10% maturation successful Royal Mail contempt weaker than expected parcel revenues implicit the period.