Australia Post is urging dog owners to help protect their Posties, as new data show a significant increase in the number of postal workers attacked, harassed or chased by dogs this financial year.
Executive General Manager People and Culture at Australia Post, Susan Davies, said there was an alarming 1,885 incidents involving dogs and Posties between July 2022 and March 2023, “already surpassing the 1,587 recorded during the full 2021/22 financial year”.
Ms Davies said New South Wales saw the largest number of incidents with 650 recorded in just nine months – nearly 28 per cent higher than the number recorded for the full year prior.
She said 555 incidents were recorded in Queensland (up 15 per cent), followed by Western Australia with 329 (up 23 per cent); Victoria and Tasmania recorded a combined 218 dog-related incidents (up five per cent); and South Australia and the Northern Territory a combined 133 (up four per cent).
“Unfortunately, we continue to see an increase in the number of incidents involving dogs and our Posties,” Ms Davies said.
“Dogs off-leash or escaping their yard and chasing down our Posties, often along busy major roads, are of particular concern given the safety implications not only for our delivery personnel and the dog but also those in the community,” she said.
“We’re seeing increased instances of our Posties sustaining injuries by either falling off their vehicles while trying to avoid unrestrained dogs or getting physically attacked by dogs jumping up and biting them.”
Ms Davies urged residents to safely secure their dogs in the home or the back garden to protect Posties and the broader community.
