Australia Post will temporarily suspend parcel post collections for eCommerce retailers for three days to clear a backlog of parcels in its network.
From 9am Saturday September 4 until 7am Tuesday September 7, Australia Post will not collect regular post parcels from ecommerce retailers in NSW, Victoria and the ACT that have prepared items to be shipped to customers.
Express Post, Premium, Startrack Express and letters will be collected as normal. Parcel post collection will continue as normal for all other states.
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Australia Post offices will remain open as normal and customers will be able to pick up and parcels that are waiting for them in their local offices.
The temporary pause on parcel collection from retailers comes as 500 employees of the postal service have been ordered into self-isolation by local health authorities.
"Australia Post currently has 500 people in necessary self-isolation, placing increased pressure on our network, while we also manage flight restrictions, temporary facility closures, and parcel volumes as high as our Christmas peak period," an Australia Post spokesperson said in a statement.
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"Deliveries will continue across the weekend, post offices will remain open as usual, and parcel processing continues, as our people deliver record amounts of parcels to Australians.
"We sincerely apologise to our customers for the inconvenience."
Parcels that are lodged at Post Offices and Standard Post Boxes will also continue to be collected.
