Newcastle and the Hunter is set to be hardest hit by new Morrison Government regulations that will let Australia Post scale back services, slash jobs and cut wages.

People in Newcastle and the Hunter already wait longer than those in cities for their mail, and changes recently announced by the Government will push those wait times out even further.

Under the Morrison government’s plan, mail delivery timeframes in the Hunter will blow out from as few as 3 business days to 7 full days.

And across Australia, any areas that currently receive daily postal deliveries will be cut back to every second day.

These changes will leave the jobs of up to one in four posties in limbo and put many other indirect jobs at risk.

There was no consultation on these regulations before they were announced, and there was no opportunity to examine their merits. Further, the Government has given no guarantees that the changes won’t be made permanent following the coronavirus crisis.

This is a cheap shot on the workers of Australia Post and people in regional communities.

At a time of economic uncertainty across regional Australia, now is not the time to be slashing jobs or services in regional areas.

The boom in parcel delivery is an opportunity to preserve and create jobs — not to cut them.