KCustomers of Deutsche Post have to prepare for major strikes. In the collective bargaining negotiations, the Verdi union called for work stoppages on Thursday. They should start in the distribution centers in the late afternoon and continue throughout Friday. “Apparently the facts do not count for the employers. Our collective bargaining demands are necessary, fair and feasible,” said negotiator Andrea Kocsis after the second round of talks.
Verdi is demanding 15 percent more money for around 160,000 employees in the letter and parcel division for a period of 12 months. An offer is still a long time coming, it will probably come on the table in the next round on February 8th and 9th. Swiss Post classifies Verdi’s position as “unrealistic” and points to a significantly declining result in the post and parcel business, which is already no longer sufficient for the necessary investments. Verdi, on the other hand, looks at the total group profit, which is likely to have climbed to a new high in 2022, but is mostly generated abroad. In Germany, the Post is primarily concerned with the shrinking volume of letters. Because the postage is still fixed by the state until the end of 2024, the group cannot simply pass on cost increases to customers. At the same time, the business is subject to strict regulation, which makes savings and rationalization measures difficult.
This includes not only the transit time specifications, which oblige Swiss Post to deliver at least 80 percent of the letters the next day. The group must also maintain a dense network of sales outlets and mailboxes. Among other things, there must be at least one point of sale in every place with more than 2000 inhabitants. To this end, the Post operates around 13,000 branches, more than required by law. There are also 10,500 parcel shops, 2,000 points of sale for stamps and 11,000 Packstations. Nevertheless, there are small gaps in the country. According to the network agency, 140 “mandatory locations” are not occupied, many of them only temporarily because tenants change or partner shops.
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