Editorial

One of the cardinal rules of any business is customer service. It means putting the customer first, going the extra mile, overcoming all obstacles to give a proper service. It is an attitude which people demand and rightly expect, especially of companies that provide an essential service.

Last Monday's decision by Maltapost not to make postal deliveries flew in the face of this conventional wisdom.

This company, which enjoys a de facto monopoly in the delivery of addressed door-to-door postal articles, decided that the weather was too unkind.

There was no driving snow or freezing temperatures, mind you, but it was raining, had been all night, and by 6.30 a.m. the management decided that the postmen were not going anywhere. So much for the extra mile! No one would argue that conditions were not easy, but they were not unusual for this time of year. The company said wind and rain were causing problems for the postmen and their motorised equipment and letters would have got wet if deliveries were made.

That was probably true of some areas - Birkirkara post office, for example, is located bang in a flood prone area - but why cancel postal deliveries everywhere? Could delivery not have been postponed for a few hours? And does the company not give raincoats and boots to staff?

One shudders to think what would have happened were other service providers to do likewise. Newspapers were delivered normally last Monday. Door-to-door rubbish collection was also made. There were traffic jams, but people still went to work.

It appears the postmen themselves were also prepared to work. Their unions are now insisting that the day should not be deducted from their annual leave, arguing that once the decision was made to cancel deliveries, they could have been assigned other duties for the day.

The industrial dispute now risks veering attention away from the real issue - good customer service. Indeed, no mention was made by anybody about the workers staying on an extra hour to get the job done. Forget service and loyalty to the client. The customer is always... last. It is a sound of silence made more deafening by the absence of any comment from the Malta Communications Authority, the regulator which is meant to champion consumers' interest.

Was the regulator consulted before deliveries were put off? Did it agree with the decision? Did it demand explanations?

Unfortunately, this is yet another case which leads one to wonder what the regulators are doing. On January 2, while criticising the Malta Resources Authority for procrastination over the liberalisation of fuel imports The Times hailed the MCA, saying this too had started off dragging its feet when there were unpleasant tasks to face "but there is no doubt that once it started to flex its muscles, the market benefited". Alas, such judgment could have been premature.

That "there are never many deliveries anyway on a Monday", as a Maltapost spokesman is reported to have told a newspaper, is an argument that holds no water (pun intended). Some people and businesses may have been awaiting important mail on Monday and they rightly feel let down by Maltapost.

One could, perhaps, excuse service interruptions because of industrial action - even though there has been too much of this at Maltapost. One could smile at how even fleas brought deliveries to a halt in June 2004, but Maltapost clearly needs to pull up its socks (or is it boots!) and get on with the job.

Its business environment is difficult enough.