There will be no compulsory redundancies reassured Bpost when presenting its four-year restructuring program, which is going to require €200M in investment. The aim is to face the drop in mail volume, around 5% annually. The planned restructuring provides for the transformation of five sorting centers (Antwerp, Brussels, Charleroi, Liege and Ghent) into an “industrial letter center” with extended activities. In short, postal sorting performed in delivery offices will be performed by these centers, while the number of offices is going to melt from 416 down to 60 across the nation. Unions are worried about the increase in productivity, which already went up by 30% since 2008. The restructuring’s impact is feared for the work overload and the extension of the distance between home and work for the mailmen. The CSC-Transcom and CGSP-Poste unions presented a strike notice, while the SLFP-Poste denounced “dumbing down on working conditions and pay levels, which was cut by 10% in two years and is only €100 higher than what jobseekers receive.” Marc de Mulder, national leader of the SLFP-Poste, thinks that there is a need for a “strategic plan worthy of the name allowing workers who are willing to leave with decent conditions.”
, which was cut by 10% in two years and is only €100 higher than what jobseekers receive.” Marc de Mulder, national leader of the SLFP-Poste, thinks that there is a need for a “strategic plan worthy of the name allowing workers who are willing to leave with decent conditions.”
Planet Labor, January 28, 2011, No. 110068 – www.planetlabor.com
Do you have information to share with us?