‘The Postman Wears Out Fast’: Retiring Sick in London’s Victorian Post Office^†

TY - JOUR

T1 - ‘The Postman Wears Out Fast’

T2 - Retiring Sick in London’s Victorian Post Office†

AU - Green, David

AU - Brown, Douglas

AU - McIlvenna, Kathleen

AU - Shelton, Nicola

PY - 2019

Y1 - 2019

N2 - The Post Office was an extremely important institution and London was the focal point of its operations. Throughout the nineteenth century, London was the main sorting centre and accounted for a third of the mail delivered in Britain. However, London postal workers were relatively unhealthy and the majority retired before they reached 60, mainly because of ill health. Using new evidence drawn from pension records, this article explores the extent of ill health in the London workforce, comparing it to that in the Metropolitan Police. For postmen, orthopaedic conditions were the main problem, relating to the ability to walk long distances. This was similar to the problems encountered in the police. For other postal workers, notably letter sorters, mental illness and poor vision were the main problems, relating to the pressure of having to work irregular hours, often at night-time and in poorly designed and overcrowded workspaces. These problems were exacerbated by the increasing frequency of mail deliveries and the constant shortage of space in the main headquarters building. In response to these issues and workers’ concerns, the Post Office introduced a range of measures including a medical service and generous sickness pay, more offices, new technologies to speed the flow of mail, better lighting, and changed working practices to ease pressures on the workforce.

AB - The Post Office was an extremely important institution and London was the focal point of its operations. Throughout the nineteenth century, London was the main sorting centre and accounted for a third of the mail delivered in Britain. However, London postal workers were relatively unhealthy and the majority retired before they reached 60, mainly because of ill health. Using new evidence drawn from pension records, this article explores the extent of ill health in the London workforce, comparing it to that in the Metropolitan Police. For postmen, orthopaedic conditions were the main problem, relating to the ability to walk long distances. This was similar to the problems encountered in the police. For other postal workers, notably letter sorters, mental illness and poor vision were the main problems, relating to the pressure of having to work irregular hours, often at night-time and in poorly designed and overcrowded workspaces. These problems were exacerbated by the increasing frequency of mail deliveries and the constant shortage of space in the main headquarters building. In response to these issues and workers’ concerns, the Post Office introduced a range of measures including a medical service and generous sickness pay, more offices, new technologies to speed the flow of mail, better lighting, and changed working practices to ease pressures on the workforce.

KW - Ill Health

KW - London

KW - Metropolitan Police

KW - Occupational Health

KW - Post Office

KW - Retirement

KW - Victorian

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85074689627&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1080/03058034.2019.1662680

DO - 10.1080/03058034.2019.1662680

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85074689627

SN - 0305-8034

VL - 44

SP - 180

EP - 205

JO - London Journal

JF - London Journal

IS - 3

ER -