Thousands of parcels stored outside at Royal Mail centre

The pictures were taken over the Royal Mail distribution centre in Filton, Bristol

Photographs of thousands of parcels waiting outside a Royal Mail distribution centre have divided opinions online.

The photos, taken by PA Media photographer Ben Birchall, show rows and rows of parcel cages at the centre in Filton, Bristol.

Hundreds of people have commented on the pictures on the BBC Radio Bristol Facebook Page, saying they are concerned their mail is stranded at Filton.

Others said they still supported Royal Mail staff, who have staged a series of strikes over pay and conditions.

The Royal Mail said the FIlton site was processing 30,000 parcels an hour, so packages were moving through very quickly.

Thousands of parcels are shown outside the centre

Paul Walters echoed many comments when he said the strikes and backlog might lead to people choosing other delivery services.

"Their days are numbered. Far too much competition out there. I haven't used RM for years," he said.

Hazel Yule said: "They aren't helping their cause to do it [go on strike] this time of year. It's mean and spiteful. All they are doing is angering people."

Andrea Levett said she was worried that medication she was waiting for "is somewhere in there".

While Hazel Bladen added: "I just worry how they will get those out of the rain."

The Filton distribution centre is always busy in the build-up to Christmas

But many people posted comments in support of Royal Mail staff who have been taking industrial action.

Luke Rundle said: "All the people who are complaining it's being disruptive, congratulations you've just realised what an effective strike is."

And Ewan Fogg commented: "So the pile of undelivered post is only the workers' fault? It is BOTH sides that have to agree.

"The strikes started months ago so the directors could have agreed to a deal of some sort and the pile you see would not be there would it?"

'Could have been avoided'

A Communication Workers Union (CWU) spokesperson said: "In many major mail centres, the post is doubling by the day.

"This has been a crisis that could have been avoided if Royal Mail CEO Simon Thompson had bothered turning up to a meeting with workplace representatives to avert these strikes.

"Postal workers belong to the communities they serve and want to get back on the job, but they know their value - and they won't accept the casualisation of their work, the destruction of their conditions and the wrecking of their family lives."

The huge Royal Mail centre is one of the biggest workplaces in Bristol

A Royal Mail spokesperson said that the pictures showed a "busy mail centre" with thousands of parcels moving through the network.

"The site shown is processing 30,000 parcels an hour so volume moves very quickly through the centre and on to the next stage in its journey," they said.

"When we are busy, especially as we recover from damaging strike action, we may have to use all space on site for the temporary storage of mail.

"This frees up space in the mail centre to ensure we can keep all mail moving."

They added that as a company the Royal Mail is doing "all we can" to "deliver Christmas" for its customers.

"We have well developed contingency plans in place to minimise delays and keep people, businesses and the country connected," they said.

"However, we cannot fully replace the daily efforts of our frontline workforce on days the CWU are taking strike action."

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