Seychelles Postal Services honours long-serving staff members |10 October 2023

Mavis Perine receiving her special award for having dedicated 45 years of her life to the public sector, among which 13 with the SPS

The Seychelles Postal Services yesterday afternoon thanked and recognised seventeen of its staff for their long years of service, ranging from five up to 30 years.

It was during a short ceremony at the STC conference room to coincide with World Post Day, on October 9, that the workers received their awards and token in the presence of board members, the management team and their colleagues along with the Minister for Finance, National Planning & Trade, Naadir Hassan. Principal secretary for Trade, Francis Lebon, was also in attendance.

At present, Peter Jean and Marie-Claire Lesperance are the workers with the most years of service; each having dedicated 30 years of their lives to the Seychelles Postal Services (SPS).

Ms Lesperance joined SPS in December 1993 as a postal controller at the Grand Anse Praslin sub-post office. She has attended training in service delivery and change management, supervisory skills, management and report writing, customer service to broaden her knowledge and skills.

Ms Lesperance has accumulated a vast experience as a postal controller and she is the longest female serving employee.

Mr Jean joined SPS in September 1993 as a postman at the Anse Royale sub-post office. In March 2004 he was promoted to senior postman, and then to delivery inspector in March 2007. In March 2011 he became the senior postal assistant and in March 2013 he was promoted to the post of assistant postal controller.

In June 2022 he was promoted to parcel supervisor at the Central Post Office.

Mr Jean has pursued training in supervisory skills, change management, service delivery, and customer service.

He is SPS’ longest male serving employee.

Speaking to Seychelles NATION, Mr Jean stated that he felt extremely happy and accomplished for having gained the award.

“I am happy that the postal office has recognised its workers for all those years,” he stated.

In his accumulated experience, Mr Jean explained that the thing that has changed the most throughout the 30 years is the actual development of the post office with the new systems and new technologies which speed up daily operations.

“For you to stay that many years in a job, you need to love your job.”

For her part, Ms Lesperance stated that she felt tremendously joyous on the occasion since she could reach that many years in SPS.

“I would like to thank God and thank my family who have been behind me for all those years, every morning to wake up to go to work,” she noted.

She expressed the same sentiment as Mr Jean, noticing that the biggest changes have been in terms of technology. “Nowadays, the number of people who stay until late hours is less and in terms of parcels, we have been receiving a little bit more throughout the years.”

Her message to the younger ones who would like to follow in her footsteps is to have a little bit of patience, and to persevere in life to reach their goals.

Yesterday’s ceremony also saw the presentation of a special award to the person who has dedicated 45 years of her life to the public sector, among which 13 has been with the SPS. The award went to Mavis Perine who is a testament of loyalty and true symbol of dedication. She received her award from Erol Dias, who is a member of the SPS board of directors and the former chief executive of SPS. The award was the first of its kind at the SPS.

The other employees with long years of service are manager operations, mail processing and delivery, Sabrina Hoareau with 25 years, Nancy Ismael with 20 years and senior postman, Andy Ernesta with 15 years.

The other employees who were awarded for five years of service were Guilianne Clarisse, Nanette Derjaques, Emma Farabeau, Lynne Payet, Luc Songoire and director of administration and human resource, Marina Souffe.

Other employees awarded for ten years of service were assistant postal controller, Aubrey Bibi; gift shop supervisor, Sheila Dine; senior postman, Gerda Folette; postman, Romanio Moustache; and Asycuda officer, Rania Rosette.

At yesterday’s ceremony, the chief executive of the Seychelles Postal Services, Mariella Buisson, congratulated all of the long-serving employees for their hard work and dedication over the years.

“You have been party to the evolution of SPS and understand how processes have changed over the years. As we move into a digital world, I encourage you to continue learning and evolving and to lead by example and to encourage your fellow colleagues to embrace further changes that we need to make to stay relevant,” she stated.

She also spoke about World Post Day, reminding about the importance of traditional postal services in the ever evolving world.

Furthermore, she expressed that the day also holds special significance as it commemorates the establishment of the Universal Postal Union in 1874 in the Swiss Capital Bern, as designated by the United Nations, of which Seychelles is a member.

“This year’s theme urges postal operators and their respective countries to support the development of a digital postal territory that complements the extensive physical network developed over centuries. It is important to understand the economic importance of postal services and honour it for the way it links the whole world.”

Sunny Esparon 

Photos by Joena Meme