Five postal workers have been sacked after a 20-year-old colleague they dubbed Miss Hotpants complained of bullying and harassment.

The move comes after eight staff were suspended from the Royal Mail sorting office in Denmark Villas, Hove, earlier this year.

Bosses ordered a probe after the woman complained she had been made the target of sexual comments.

Four managers and four delivery men were suspended and sent home on full pay in January.

Royal Mail bosses confirmed that five of those under investigation have now been sacked.

A spokesman said the company would not give details of who had been dismissed or explain the reasons.

But it is believed they will be given the chance to appeal against the decision in the next few weeks.

Staff at the sorting office were ordered not to comment about the dismissals but one said: "There is a lot of bad feeling over the way it has been dealt with.

"A lot of us think the ones who have been sacked have been treated very unfairly."

Royal Mail, which employs 170,000 staff, 15 per cent of them women, said it would not tolerate bullying and harassment.

Ninian Le Blank, the companys diversity director, said: "We are determined to offer full support to anyone suffering harassment.

"The vast majority of our workforce do not experience this but any case is one too many.

"We are working hard to eradicate all forms of bullying and harassment in the workplace.

"This type of behaviour is completely unacceptable.

"Anyone found to have been involved will be subject to our rigorous disciplinary process and the ringleaders dismissed."