Postal workers’ strike: letters and parcels are left lying around again

Status: 01/26/2023 09:17 am

In the collective bargaining dispute with Deutsche Post, the ver.di union is increasing the pressure: workers in parcel and letter centers and in the delivery area have been called on to go on strike today. The walkout could last even longer.

The trade union ver.di has called for warning strikes in the collective bargaining dispute with Deutsche Post today. Employees in selected companies in the parcel and letter centers as well as in parcel, letter and group delivery should take part in the all-day campaigns nationwide.

Strike planned until midnight

The warning strikes were initially only planned for one day, i.e. until midnight. However, an extension is possible. “It may well be that more warning strikes will follow in the next few days,” said Thomas Großstück from ver.di NRW.

The call for a strike follows strikes by postal workers last week: According to the information, around 30,000 employees took part from Thursday evening to Saturday.

Collective bargaining in early February

With reference to the high inflation, the union is demanding a wage increase of 15 percent for the employees of Deutsche Post AG with a term of the collective agreement of twelve months. The training allowances are to be increased by 200 euros per month for each year of training. Collective bargaining is scheduled to resume on February 8th and 9th.

Verdi: “Strikes are a clear sign”

“The strikes are a clear signal from our members towards employers,” said Andrea Kocsis, deputy ver.di chairwoman and negotiator in the collective bargaining conflict. In the second round of collective bargaining last week, the employers made it clear that they were neither willing nor able to compensate for the employees’ real wage losses.

The group expects a record profit of around 8.4 billion euros for 2022. “The company owes this success to the work of its employees. Against this background, our wage demands are necessary, fair and feasible.”

misunderstanding at the post office

A spokesman for the Post reacted with incomprehension to the renewed work stoppages. It had already been announced that an offer would be made at the beginning of the third round of negotiations on February 8th. Therefore, the warning strikes are “unnecessary, because they are ultimately only at the expense of our customers”.

Swiss Post can look back on years of strong growth, which was also due to the corona pandemic: people ordered far more online than before. Parcel volumes fell somewhat last year as the consequences of the pandemic eased off and people went shopping again. The economic downturn also made itself felt. On the other hand, the mail business, which had been weakening before, picked up due to an increase in advertising mail. The prospects of the logistician are still positive in times of booming online trade.

Post: Need financial leeway for investments

However, higher costs for energy, for example, are causing the company problems. Deutsche Post emphasizes that it needs financial leeway for investments – investments that will secure current jobs in the long term. If personnel costs rose too much, this could slow down investments and cloud the future.

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