The minimum number of days NZ Post is required to deliver mail for both urban and rural areas has been lowered.
Approved by the Government, the changes to the Postal Deed of Understanding (the Deed) between the Crown and New Zealand Post aimed to make the service sustainable as its use among Kiwis declined.
Under the approved changes, NZ Post had a minimum obligation to deliver mail two days a week for urban areas (down from three), PO Boxes (down from five) and private bags.
The minimum delivery frequency for rural areas dropped from five days a week to three.
The obligations state that delivery days must not all follow each other when operating at the minimum, “to ensure mail delivery is spread throughout the week”.
Mail delivery will remain as usual for now, NZ Post chief executive David Walsh said.
Everything you need to know as NZ Post significantly cuts delivery days, watch on TVNZ+
James Hartley, general manager of communications, infrastructure and trade at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, said the reduced days reflected how Kiwis use the postal service today.
“New Zealanders are sending fewer letters than ever before. The average delivery point now receives less than two letters per week, compared to 7.5 in 2013. Despite being used less, NZ Post has been required to maintain a network designed for much higher volumes.”
The new obligations also reduced the minimum number of postal service points from 880 to 500, with a further reduction to 400 after four years.
The minimum number of service points offering personal assistance would be halved over time, from 240 to 120.
NZ Post said the retail locations to be reviewed first would likely be those in urban areas.
“The minimum requirements for retail hadn’t changed since 1989, and we need to ensure these are best serving customer needs and that we have the right number of stores in the right locations.”
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No rural service point closures would be allowed to take place in the first year of the new deed, and NZ Post must consult with affected communities before closures.
A cap on the number of communal delivery points, which host multiple individual addresses, such as apartment buildings, at 3% would be changed to the ability to consolidate up to 5% of delivery points to communal points annually.
These changes would require reasonable notice and community engagement before conversions.
The next review was scheduled to commence in three years, with an earlier review to be triggered if mail volumes fell below 120 million items per year.
NZ Post can choose to operate its service at or above the minimum levels.
The updates only cover mail delivery, as the Deed does not govern parcel/courier delivery.
NZ Post said it supported the changes, saying it would “provide us with flexibility to continue making changes to bring the mail service in line with today’s communication needs”.
“Deed change doesn’t automatically result in operational change to NZ Post’s services. The Deed of Understanding sets out the minimum requirements that NZ Post needs to meet, however, we then make our operating decisions within those boundaries, based on a wide range of factors,” Walsh said.
“Any operational changes will include appropriate engagement with our people and stakeholders in the first instance,” says Walsh.
Walsh said that for now, Kiwis didn’t need to do anything diffrently, with mail delivery to continue as usual.
“NZ Post will proactively communicate future service changes to the public, to ensure that Kiwis know exactly what they can expect from their mail service.”
Additional rural protections
Hartley said MBIE had heard “strongly” from rural communities about their need for postal services, so greater protections were included in the updated deed.
“In recognition of this feedback, the Government has included additional rural protections and maintained a greater number of minimum delivery days compared to urban areas in the Deed to ensure that rural communities are not disproportionately affected.
“This includes a safeguard against any rural retail store closures in the first year, unless circumstances are beyond NZ Post’s control.
“Without these changes to NZ Post’s minimum service level obligations, the cost of maintaining current services would not be financially sustainable,” Hartley said.
In 2023, the state owned enterprise announced plans to merge its mail and parcel operations, with couriers effectively picking up work from posties. The merger would lead to the loss of around 750 jobs over five years.
NZ Post was forced to go back to the drawing board with its proposal however, after the Employment Relations Authority found in July it failed to meet its obligations to union members, Newsroom reported.
