Proud to serve

As part of October’s Black History Month we have been profiling a number of black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) colleagues to celebrate the differences, contributions and achievements of our diverse workforce.

Postman and Brent councillor, Ernest Ezeajughi, from Greenford mail centre, has worked for Royal Mail for 14 years.

‘I migrated to the UK from Nigeria in February 2004 and joined Royal Mail that October,’ said Ernest. ‘I have worked in various areas in Greenford mail centre including the Special Delivery Enclosure (SDE), Tracked mail and parcels.

‘I have previously volunteered as a team leader during Christmas ad hoc operations and the operational transformation in Greenford, where I also worked with the health and safety team to assess the risks associated with sorting parcels. I am also a member of the CWU.’

Ernest used the flexibility offered by Royal Mail to study for an MSc in Environmental Management at Kings College, London. He has also undertaken the NEBOSH (National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health) certificate in Environmental Management.

‘Outside Royal Mail, my professional career is as a standardisation scientist/quality co-ordinator at the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA), the government agency which regulates medicines, medical devices and blood components for transfusion in the UK.’

Ernest has been a school governor for more than 12 years and often speaks in schools about the values of hard work. ‘I have organised various community cleaning campaigns as I am passionate about giving back to my local community,’ he said. ‘I also do my best to mentor young people on being influencers in society by sharing my story of what I have achieved as an immigrant, both professionally and politically.

‘My interest in politics led to my declaration to contest the local election in 2014 in the most diverse borough in the UK and represent a ward with the most populous BAME community in the London borough of Brent. I have been very proud to represent Stonebridge ward as their councillor for more than four years now. And after the 2018 local election, I was again elected as the deputy mayor for Brent, extending my local volunteering network both in and outside of the borough.

‘Last year, I declared the Brent council’s Black History Month open and spoke passionately about the proud history and the great contributions made by so many people from different BAME backgrounds throughout history. I was proud to do the same again this year.’

Supporting BAME colleagues

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Making our business a place where black, Asian and minority ethnic colleagues can achieve their potential remains a priority.

Career progression is a key focus as we work towards improving the representation of colleagues from BAME backgrounds across all levels of the business. We need to build greater awareness that the network exists and is there to support our people and shine a light on all the good, positive things we are doing across the business.

If you are thinking about holding a BAME cultural event in your unit and need some help, please reach out to us. To contact the BAME steering group, or volunteer to help out with their activities, please email bame@royalmail.com.