Post Office Limited
We, the undersigned, commit to honour the Armed Forces Covenant and support the Armed Forces Community. We recognise the value Serving Personnel, both Regular and Reservists, Veterans and military families contribute to our business and our country.
The Armed Forces Covenant
An enduring covenant between the people of the United Kingdom, Her Majesty’s Government and all those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces of the Crown and their families
The first duty of Government is the defence of the realm. Our Armed Forces fulfil that responsibility on behalf of the Government, sacrificing some civilian freedoms, facing danger and, sometimes, suffering serious injury or death as a result of their duty. Families also play a vital role in supporting the operational effectiveness of our Armed Forces. In return, the whole nation has a moral obligation to the members of the Naval Service, the Army and the Royal Air Force, together with their families. They deserve our respect and support, and fair treatment.
Those who serve in the Armed Forces, whether Regular or Reserve, those who have served in the past, and their families, should face no disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public and commercial services. Special consideration is appropriate in some cases, especially for those who have given most such as the injured and the bereaved.
This obligation involves the whole of society: it includes voluntary and charitable bodies, private organisations, and the actions of individuals in supporting the Armed Forces. Recognising those who have performed military duty unites the country and demonstrates the value of their contribution. This has no greater expression than in upholding this Covenant.
Section 1: Principles of the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant
1.1 We Post Office Limited will endeavour in our business dealings to uphold the key principles of the Armed Forces Covenant, which are:
- no member of the Armed Forces Community should face disadvantage in the provision of public and commercial services compared to any other citizen;
- and in some circumstances that special treatment may be appropriate especially for the injured or bereaved.
Section 2: Demonstrating our commitment
2.1 Post Office Limited recognises the value serving personnel, reservists, veterans and military families bring to our business. We will seek to uphold the principles of the Armed Forces Covenant, by pledging to the following:
- Armed Forces Friendly
- UK Service Veterans And Leavers
- UK Service Spouses And Partners
- Flexible Leave For Spouses
- UK Reservists
- UK Cadets
- Armed Forces Charities
We also pledge the following:
-Armed forces friendly: promoting that our customers, partners, suppliers and employers understand our support for the armed forces community and their families -Seeking to support the employment of veterans by initially working with recruitment partners to help create a pathway to job opportunities at the post office -We run a cohort style intake programme which commits to hiring a number of veterans and recruiting, training and developing them throughout an induction period and through rotational placements across our organisation -Seeking to open up the pathway to job opportunities at post office for veterans by putting our vacancies onto the CTP website -Offering up top ten days paid leave for annual training and accommodating any deployments & mobilisations consistent with our existing policies -Supporting our cadet force adult volunteers and instructors, including granting up to five days paid leave to attend their annual camps -Supporting our employees and their spouses and partners with a suite of benefits as part of our employment package- Providing assistance support as part of our wellbeing programme. This ranges from financial, legal and general counselling support for the entire family of the employee available 24/7. Providing healthcare support through a cash plan scheme for employees and extended cover for families for a small subscription fee. Services include consultations, medical treatment and support for long term sufferers. Providing financial support to help colleagues and their families in times of need, such as after a major incident, a serious illness, home modifications to help cope with a disability or allow long term carers to take a break through our partnership with the Rowland Hill Fund -Seeking to support all post office employees who have links with, or an interest in, the armed forces through the post office armed forces network -Continuing to encourage volunteering activities by our employee, including engagement with and/or fund raising for registered armed forces charities
2.2 We will publicise these commitments through our literature and/or on our website, setting out how we will seek to honour them and inviting feedback from the Service community and our customers on how we are doing.