February 11, 2013
The Commonwealth Ombudsman has been contacted in relation to the decision to close counter services at the Kingaroy Street Post Office.
The move followed an ABC Radio report today where an Australia Post spokesman ruled out any reversal of the corporation’s decision.
Members of the protest group were told they must first lodge a complaint with Australia Post’s Customer Contact Channel, then return the matter to the Ombudsman’s office if they are unhappy with the response.
Australia Post area manager Geoff Hyland told ABC Radio that Australia Post’s customer base in Kingaroy had declined by 20 per cent over the past five years.
He said services needed to be centred at the Kingaroy Shoppingworld outlet to ensure the long-term viability of postal services in the town but denied the change amounted to a service reduction.
“It’s more about … building a strong presence in Kingaroy with postal services and certainly about maintaining and looking for a long-term benefit and viability for postal services in Kingaroy,” he said.
Mr Hyland said only about 100 people per day use the Kingaroy Street post office, while the Shoppingworld outlet serves 500 people daily.
On Friday, a group of 60 Kingaroy residents demonstrated outside the post office against the planned closure.
The Kingaroy Chamber of Commerce and Industry has already written a letter of protest to Australia Post, and South Burnett mayor Wayne Kratzmann will be meeting protest representatives tomorrow before doing the same.
Related articles:
