Reserved occupation

[KILTY]

Can anyone tell me if a Postman would be regarded as a reserved occupation during the war.

Jon.

[charlesmessenger]

The answer is no. The 8th Londons (Post Office Rifles) contained a large number of postmen in their ranks and other postal staff served with the Royal Engineers Postal Service. The postman's job was increasingly taken over by women.

Charles M

[Guest Ian Bowbrick]

There were also a large number of postman in the Labour Corps and I have come across an HS Coy based at Earls Court.

[carninyj]

While not contesting your view that a postman would not be in what was considered a reserved occupation, I query your reasons for saying so, that is, that a lot of postmen were in various units. As far as I am aware, and I am asking for clarification on the matter, being in a reserved occupation did not generally stop a man from enlisting - miners might have been an exception. I am just old enough to have talked to some old soldiers and one, Pte Wm. Clarke of the Middlesex Regt., told me that though a country carpenter, and so in a reserved occupation (agriculture), he chose to enlist to avoid a white feather. Were there different grades of 'reserved occupation'?

I await your comments with interest.

Regards

Carninyj

[Mike_H]

My Grandfather was the Senior Postal Inspector at Aldershot in 1914. He was placed in a reserved occupation category, presumably because it was thought that he would make a more valuable contribution to the War Effort running the postal delivery service in a major garrison town rather than serving in the Army. He subsequently registered and attested under the Derby Scheme but was still not called up to serve. I don't know if this was because of his occupation or because of his age and family situation being taken into account.

Many of his postmen were reservists and were recalled in 1914 while others volunteered, their places being taken by newly recruited Postwomen.

The old Roll of Honour the used to hang in Aldershot Post Office had the names of 191 men who served and included 11 who lost their lives - the list would have been from all parts of the GPO of the Aldershot District - postal delivery, telegraph service, counter staff etc.

Mike

[charlesmessenger]

Carninyj

I was not giving the large number of postmen serving in the army as the reason per se that they were not in a reserved occupation, but merely as evidence of the case. I don’t know when your Private Clarke enlisted, but it may well have been before agricultural workers were exempted. Apart from munition workers, a number of whom were clawed back from the Army during 1915, reserved or `starred’ occupations did not really come into being until the introduction of the Derby scheme in autumn 1915. Indeed, during 1915 there was a plan to raise a series of Yeoman battalions from agricultural workers after the completion of the harvest, but only one was formed - the 21st King’s Royal Rifle Corps (Yeoman Rifles). Clarke appears, from what you say, to have been a volunteer and probably before the Derby Scheme came into effect.

With the Derby Scheme, which meant that everyone of military age had to register with the authorities, certain occupations became starred, thereby giving exemption from military service. Agriculture became one of these (although only for those with particular skills, and not the ordinary farm labourer), but the shortage which had already occurred meant that soldiers with the necessary experience were temporarily recalled from France to help with the ploughing. Agricultural companies were also formed from low medical category infantrymen in early 1917 and transferred to the newly created Labour Corps that spring. Women’s organisations, notably the Women’s Land Army, also played a big part.

Indeed, one of the measures for deciding whether an occupation was starred was if women could do the job as well as men. In the case of postal workers the answer was clearly yes. In the case of Private Clarke, that is if he enlisted after the Derby Scheme had come into effect, the same reason could have applied.

Mike, in your Grandfather’s case, it is clear that, while of military age, his position and experience in the Post Office were too valuable and it was for this reason that he was not called up.

Charles M

[carninyj]

Charles M

Thank you kindly for the interesting and enlightening response. I shall digest it at leisure.

Regards

Carninyj