NFSP statement: Additional remuneration payment

Post Office Ltd has today announced that an additional remuneration payment of £20million will be paid to postmasters in December’s settlement.

Both independent postmasters and PO’s retail partners will receive the payment ahead of Christmas. A breakdown of the payment will be in this month’s remuneration statement, which will be sent out tonight (Tuesday 17 December).

The NFSP has made the following statement:

The NFSP has long campaigned for a significant increase in postmasters’ remuneration, so it is reflective of the true cost of providing services on behalf of Post Office Ltd (PO) and government. This £20m as a one-off payment in December is not only well timed but very much required.

Back in 2021, NFSP research showed that over 70% of postmasters were earning less than the National Minimum Wage. Inflation since then has eroded any increases that postmasters have received in their remuneration and therefore, we know just how many of our colleagues are struggling and are very worried about their ability to pay bills and provide for their families. 

This is why the NFSP has fought so hard to increase postmaster remuneration. We first lobbied PO for back-office payments, now known as Operational Excellence (OE), in 2019. Following pressure from the NFSP, PO agreed to a one-off payment due to the cost-of-living crisis in September 2022, before PO carried out a time and motion study in the summer of 2023 on exactly what work a postmaster, and their assistants carry out on their behalf. OE was subsequently announced in March, alongside an announcement of a £5m additional payment to postmasters for the 2023/24 performance, and began in September this year.

Last week, PO announced that the additional remuneration earned from the November OE period was 3.76%, up from 3.62% in October. This is just a step to progressing to a remuneration model that reflects the fair pay required for all postmasters.

The NFSP has also delivered more than £16m remuneration through its Mails Support Team and last year’s DVLA campaign helped to keep the service in branches and has delivered an additional £2m income for postmasters.

We also fought hard to have banking rates increased and this has resulted in nearly £100m extra income since March 2020.

The NFSP will continue to fight for better remuneration on postmasters’ behalf, and we look forward to working with government and PO to deliver a further £100m uplift in remuneration by March 2026.