A sacked postman is facing a bleak future after losing an appeal against his sacking, rites Richard Abbott.

Don Carroll, 39, said he was "devastated" after waiting three months for the outcome of the Royal Mail appeal.

He was sacked in November after twisting his ankle in a workplace accident and taking two days' sick leave.

His dismissal sparked wildcat strike action by colleagues which severely disrupted deliveries in Bicester on November 2. An hour-long walkout also took place at the sorting office in Cowley, Oxford. The father-of-three, of Hendon Place, Bicester, could now take his former bosses to an industrial tribunal claiming unfair dismissal.

He said: "All I got was a six-line letter saying that because I had not gone to the John Radcliffe Hospital they couldn't believe a word I had said.

"But my brother-in-law took me to the hospital. He sent a letter to the guy doing the appeal, but he didn't respond. The whole thing hinged on the fact that it is possible to walk into the John Radcliffe and walk out again without having your name taken.

"If they don't think you need to see a doctor, then the nurse just sends you home without taking your name. "I am angry the appeal took so long. I am hoping the union will support me in a tribunal."

Mr Carroll, who delivered mail in Caversfield and Wendlebury, now works part-time at a fruit and vegetable warehouse in Kidlington.

A Royal Mail spokesman would not comment, except to say the investigation took so long because of the busy Christmas and New Year period.

Story date: Tuesday 01 February

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