Shorts row ends in police escort

A postman was escorted home by police in a row over shorts, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) has said.

The employee at a Royal Mail sorting office in Northampton is thought to have been wearing non-Royal Mail issue blue shorts when he arrived at work.

His manager called police when he refused to go home and change his shorts on Tuesday, the CWU said.

A Royal Mail spokesman said police were no longer involved and the matter was being resolved internally.

Mick Fitzmaurice, CWU branch secretary for Northamptonshire, said the man had been wearing navy blue shorts, similar to Royal Mail style, because he had not been given official ones.

'Sent home'

Mr Fitzmaurice said: "He just can't believe what happened.

"What would normally happen is management would contact the union.

"I'm confident had they done that it's something we would have smoothed over in two minutes or less.

"They sent him home without pay and then called the police to escort him off the premises."

Mr Fitzmaurice wants a complete Industrial Relations Review to be held in the sorting office in Crow Lane.

A Northamptonshire Police spokesman said: "We received a call in respect of a staff member acting in a disruptive manner.

"An officer attended and it was resolved and the person was taken back home."

Lee Barron, Midlands regional CWU secretary, said: "To phone the police to get them escorted just smacks of over-reaction."

A Royal Mail spokesman said: "We are now resolving this issue internally, while, of course, doing all we can to continue delivering the mail with our people wearing a uniform that we're very proud of and that our customers expect to see when we call at their address."