POSTAL NEWS
No 102 -2018
Formulated by UNI Apro Post and Logistics Sector
Spending time with family is the nation’s favourite Christmas tradition. December 17, 2018
Japan Post to invest $2.6 billion in U.S. insurer Aflac.
December 16, 2018.
Starbucks to expand coffee delivery in the US.
December 14, 2018.
Demography Collective Agreement at Deutsche Post AG again significantly improved. December 14, 2018.
Package power. More online shopping means more deliveries. December 13, 2018.
Posti’s new record: 1.3 million parcels last week.
December 13, 2018.
Spending time with family is the nation’s favourite Christmas tradition
December 17, 2018
Spending time with family is the nation’s favourite Christmas tradition (28 per cent), followed by eating Christmas dinner (23 per cent) and decorating the Christmas tree, along with helping the homeless and enjoying time off work, according to a study commissioned by Parcelforce Worldwide.
Over six in ten (61 per cent) people voted Christmas as their favourite seasonal holiday. Those living in the North East are the most festive in the UK with seven in ten residents voting Christmas their favourite seasonal holiday. Northern Ireland, Yorkshire & Humber, Scotland and the South West complete the top five festive regions, respectively.
The most unusual gifts people have sent for Christmas include: a driftwood Labrador, a painted concrete gnome, a personalised wooden spoon, a Victorian slipper-shaped bed pan, an experience day to walk with llamas, an ancestry DNA testing kit, an acre of the moon, a sprig of mistletoe, bagpipes and a personalised photo cushion.
Almost one in four (37 per cent) of those surveyed have some members of family living abroad. 40 per cent keep in touch with their family via Skype and 30 per cent via post. With that in mind, half (50 per cent) of people send Christmas presents abroad with Europe being the most popular destination, followed by North America and Australia. Just under four in ten (37 per cent) will send their parcels abroad a month in advance, with over ten per cent doing so earlier than this. 36 per cent send their parcels abroad two to three weeks before Christmas.
Some of the furthest destinations people have sent Christmas presents to include: Malawi, Bisbee in Arizona, Chiayaphum in Thailand, Alaska, Winnipeg in Canada, Timor, Namibia, Wollongong and the outback in Australia.
The survey also revealed that people do the majority of their Christmas shopping a month in advance of the big day (35 per cent). Almost one in four people (23 per cent) do their shopping two to three weeks before Christmas. Only one per cent leave it to the last minute and do their shopping on Christmas Eve.
One in six (16 per cent) make their own Christmas presents and 58 per cent send their gifts to others via a parcel carrier with a quarter using Parcelforce Worldwide services. Women are more likely to make their own Christmas gifts (22 per cent), compared to men (9 per cent).
A spokesperson from Parcelforce Worldwide said “It is heart-warming to see that spending time with family is the nation’s favourite Christmas tradition. With some families unfortunately unable to spend Christmas with all their loved ones, sending touching presents ahead of the big day is a great way to share the festive spirit – across the nation and the globe.”
Source : https://www.royalmailgroup.com/en/press-centre/press-releases
Japan Post to invest $2.6 billion in U.S. insurer Aflac
December 16, 2018
Japan Post Holdings Co is planning to invest about $2.6 billion in Aflac Inc, aiming to become the largest shareholder in the U.S. insurer, a person familiar with the matter said.
Japan Post, a conglomerate that spans postal delivery, banking and insurance services, plans to initially acquire a 7 to 8 percent stake in Aflac for about 300 billion yen ($2.6 billion), said the person.
Under the deal Japan Post can increase its stake to a maximum 20 percent in four years time, the person said. Aflac’s current largest shareholder is Vanguard Group Inc with a 8.77 percent stake, according to data from Refinitiv Eikon.
Aflac said in a statement it was engaged in discussions with Japan Post regarding a potential minority investment in Aflac but the discussions did not involve Aflac or any of its subsidiaries becoming a member of Japan Post Group.
Aflac did not elaborate further. A spokesman at Japan Post declined to comment.
The transaction, which is expected to be announced this month, will follow the agreement made in 2013 between Japan Post and Aflac which allows Aflac to sell its cancer insurance at Japan Post’s offices across Japan.
The news was earlier reported by the Nikkei business daily.
Source : https://japantoday.com/category/business
Starbucks to expand coffee delivery in the US
December 14, 2018
Starbucks plans to expand coffee delivery across the US with UberEats as part of a broader strategy to try to reach more customers.
The coffee chain, which has been facing slowing traffic to its domestic coffee shops, outlined its growth plans for investors gathered in New York.
Starbucks began testing delivery in Miami with UberEats in September and will begin offering it in nearly a quarter of its more than 8000 US company-operated stores early next year.
Delivery is becoming a source of added sales for many restaurant chains that have seen their dining room traffic erode. Many chains say delivery has attracted customers who don’t come in to eat.
There are unique challenges involved in delivery, including getting food to customers’ homes quickly and while still hot -- something that could be particularly problematic for coffee. Delivery fees also can be a turn-off for customers placing small orders.
Starbucks is farther ahead on delivery in China, where the service has been expanded to more than 2000 stores in 30 cities since the chain joined with a delivery unit of Alibaba Group Holding.
The company says it has solved some of the challenges delivery poses in China with splash-proof lids, delivery containers designed to keep drinks hot or cold and tamper-proof packaging seals.
Dedicated drivers in China promise to deliver Starbucks coffee in 30 minutes or less. The chain also is creating a virtual store that allows customers to use only one app to order gifts or products for themselves and have them delivered.
Starbucks has been working for more than a year to streamline its operations so it can focus on boosting customer traffic in the US and China, its two key markets. Starbucks has closed its Teavana mall stores, redeployed baristas’ duties, including having them clean after shops close, to allow them to focus more on customer service and partnered with Nestlé to market and sell much of its packaged coffee in supermarkets.
Starbucks-branded products have been developed for use in Nestlé’s Nespresso and Dolce Gusto single-serve coffee machines.
The company last month said it would lay off approximately 5 per cent of its global corporate workforce as it seeks to become more nimble and focused.
“We’re simplifying the business to accelerate the velocity of innovation, “ Starbucks chief executive Kevin Johnson said in an interview Thursday.
The company is trying to develop more cold drinks, which now make up 50 per cent of its beverage sales. The chain plans to have nitro cold brew on tap in all of its US company-operated stores by the end of fiscal 2019.
Mr Johnson pointed to the company’s fiscal fourth quarter, when the company posted progress in every operating metric it tracks globally, as proof that its moves are beginning to pay off.
However, sales growth in the US beat expectations due to an increase in average ticket. Getting more customers in its doors remains a challenge, the company has said. The coffee market has become increasingly crowded in recent years, with new entrants on the high end and lower-cost rivals such as Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. offering improved espresso-based drinks.
Activist investor William Ackman in October disclosed at 1.1 per cent stake in Starbucks and has said he agrees with the changes Starbucks is making. Mr. Johnson declined to comment on the nature of any meetings he’s had with Mr Ackman.
Source : https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/news
Demography Collective Agreement at Deutsche Post AG again significantly improved
December 14, 2018
The United Services Trade Union (ver.di) and Deutsche Post AG have again significantly improved the demography collective agreement concluded in 2011. The entitlement of employees to semi-retirement will be extended from the current six to ten years in the future. It can therefore be taken in the future from the age of 55 years. "The work at the post office is very exhausting. The demography collective agreement is very popular with employees, as it reduces the burden on end-of-career life for a long period of time while eliminating sensitive pension discounts. The expansion now from six to ten years is so far unique in the tariff landscape, "said deputy ver.di chairman Andrea Kocsis.
The demography collective agreement includes a time value account, in which the employees contribute remuneration components, and a regulation on partial retirement. With entry into the partial retirement, the working time is halved
immediately. At the end of partial retirement before retirement, part-time retirement is an exemption phase from the value assets individually accumulated by the employees in a time value account. The part-time wage in partial retirement is based on income up to 87 percent of the net remuneration before partial retirement, the pension contributions are increased to 90 percent of the contributions before partial retirement. The collective agreements do not include a collective maximum number of employees who can claim partial retirement.
Deutsche Post AG currently has over 160,000 employees, around 130,000 of whom are salaried employees. Around 26,000 of them now have a time value account and 4,200 are already in the previous six-year partial retirement scheme.
The demography collective agreement of Deutscher Post AG and ver.di was honored in 2013 with the Innovation Prize of the German Economy. The new tariff improvements now made come into effect on 1 March 2019.
Source : https://psl.verdi.de/presse/
Package power. More online shopping means more deliveries
December. 13, 2018
If you think the Postal Service is delivering a lot of packages this holiday season, wait until you see what happens next year — and the year after that.
Shoppers are expected to spend $123 billion on online holiday purchases in 2018, up 16.6 percent from one year earlier, according to data from eMarketer. In 2016, online shoppers spent $91.15 billion during the holidays.
This is driving major increases in package volumes for USPS and other shippers.
The Postal Service expects to deliver 900 million packages during the holidays this year, up from about 870 million in 2017 and 750 million two years ago.
A total of 2 billion packages are expected to be handled by USPS and other shippers this holiday season.
The numbers are likely to keep going up for the foreseeable future.
“It is entirely plausible that there will be 4 to 6 billion packages” handled by the Postal Service and other shippers five years from now during the holiday season, according to Brittain Ladd, an online commerce and supply chain analyst.
“Then in 10 years, that number could be between 6 and 8 billion,” he said.
To keep up with the increases, USPS in recent years has invested in new equipment and vehicles and added Sunday package deliveries.
The organization also hires seasonal help, although that can be challenging during a tight labor market.
“You have to be more creative in how you recruit holiday help. We’ve been very successful. Our brand helps us. We have a very trusted brand,” said Kevin McAdams, the Postal Service’s delivery operations vice president.
Surging package volumes also present shippers with logistical challenges, including the need to satisfy customers who want their orders as quickly as possible.
To become more efficient, USPS has introduced methods like dynamic routing, a technique that puts package delivery points in the most efficient, logical order.
“Technology opens up a world of possibilities,” McAdams said. “There’s a tremendous opportunity using technology to facilitate improvements in last-mile delivery.”
The closure of many brick-and-mortar retail businesses will also drive more growth in online shopping in the coming years, especially among consumers in rural areas.
DeeDee Lynch, a Snyder, TX, resident, is hitting the “buy” button on retail sites more often during this holiday season because many chain stores in her area have closed.
“When you live in a metropolitan area, you have so many more choices. But not when you live in a small town,” she said.
Source : https://link.usps.com/2018/12/13
Posti’s new record: 1.3 million parcels last week
December 13, 2018
The Christmas season of online stores was launched at the end of November on Black Friday and continued on Cyber Monday. They were preceded by the Singles’ Day on November 11 that has been adopted in Finland as well. Posti’s record-high parcel volumes indicate that Finns were utilizing the attractive seasonal discounts of Finnish and foreign online stores.
“Nearly 1.3 million parcels passed through Posti last week. It is the highest parcel volume in one week during the entire history of Posti. Last year’s record – 1.2 million parcels – was made closer to Christmas, which means that the busiest parcel week is still ahead of us,” says Turkka Kuusisto, Vice President, Parcel & eCommerce at Posti.
During the peak season, Posti employees work in three shifts, 24 hours a day. Posti’s logistics centers are running up to seven days a week until the end of the Christmas season.
Posti is prepared for a record-breaking peak season
Posti is prepared for a record-breaking peak season in online retail. Among other things, Posti has doubled the number of Parcel Lockers, which are a popular delivery option for consumers. The 1000th Posti Parcel Locker went into service on November 12 at Helsinki’s Central Railway Station. The peak parcel season will also be expedited by more than a hundred pickup points open for the holiday period. Throughout the season, Posti will also be delivering items for pickup on weekends.
When picking up parcels, we recommend utilizing Posti’s own shops’ longer opening hours with fewer customers. If the actual pickup point of the parcel is full, the parcel will be flexibly delivered to another nearby pickup point in order to avoid delaying the parcel delivery. More than 100 temporary pickup points are available during the Christmas season.
A complete directory of Posti’s service points and their opening hours is available at posti.fi/kartta.
Parcels on their way by December 19
Parcels from domestic and foreign online stores will still make it to the recipients before Christmas. However, small items from Asia will not make it to the recipients before Christmas, since delivery times from China, for instance, may be several weeks.
Domestic parcels will reach their recipients by Christmas if they are mailed by December 19 by paying the postage fee in advance either online or through the OmaPosti application. You can leave a pre-paid parcel in any Parcel Locker or Posti outlet. Parcels should be brought to Posti outlets one day earlier, by December 18. Parcels to outside Europe must be mailed by December 7, to Europe by December 14, and to nearby countries, including Sweden and the Baltic countries, by December 17.
Source : https://www.posti.com/en/media/media-news/2018POSTAL NEWS
No 103 -2018
Formulated by UNI Apro Post and Logistics Sector
The Postal Worker’s Christmas. December 18, 2018.
ARAMEX “Transforming” The Way Packages Are Being Delivered. December 18, 2018.
NZ Post to deliver gifts and goods to charities.
December 17, 2018.
Australia’s biggest parcel delivery day expected tomorrow ahead of Christmas. December 16, 2018.
Poste Italiane to Donate Abandoned Parcels to the Needy. December 15, 2018.
‘Rock-solid strike’ on the Isle of Man. December 14, 2018.
The Postal Worker’s Christmas
December 18, 2018
My grandfather was part of a long tradition of postal workers who sacrificed Christmas Eve with their families to deliver holiday packages.
Every year on Christmas Eve, my extended family gathers for a meal that can be served at the last minute, whenever we’re ready to eat. This tradition of cold salads, ham balls and cookies goes back to my mom’s childhood.
My mother’s father was a North Dakota postal employee, so on Christmas Eve, she never knew when he would get home. He was determined to keep working, my mom would tell us, “until every Christmas package that could be delivered would be delivered.” He started working for the Postal Service in 1911, and family lore has it that he sometimes had to trudge through the snow on horseback to deliver the mail.
As in my grandfather’s day, today’s postal workers have a mandate to provide universal service, delivering mail and packages to every American household at uniform rates, no matter where they live. That mandate has helped bind our vast nation.
This principle of affordable universal service is under threat. This year, the White House Office of Management and Budget recommended selling the public Postal Service to a private, for-profit corporation.
On Dec. 4, a Trump task force on the postal system followed up with recommendations for partial privatization and other changes that would reduce services and raise delivery prices, particularly for rural communities.
Specifically, the task force urges the Postal Service to change its pricing system to maximize profits on commercial package deliveries. This would be a major blow to families who buy products online and live along high-cost delivery routes.
We’re not just talking about Hawaii and Alaska. Private carriers already impose surcharges, as high as $4.45 per item, for package deliveries to approximately 53 percent of the nation’s 42,000 ZIP codes. These surcharge areas are home to about 70 million people, according to our calculations, in rural areas, small towns and suburbs.
If the Trump task force has its way, customers in these areas would no longer be able to turn to the Postal Service for surcharge-free, lower-cost rates on most of these routes. Small businesses hoping to send mail or packages to these places would also suffer.
Rural communities would also be more likely to lose their local post offices. The task force wants to get rid of a law prohibiting the closing of rural post offices solely because they’re running a deficit. The Postal Service would also have the green light to reduce delivery days from six to five or even fewer days per week and expand the use of cluster mailboxes to replace door-to-door delivery.
These and other proposed service cuts would shrink the number of good postal jobs — jobs that have long supported this country’s middle class. My grandfather’s 47 years of steady Postal Service employment protected the family from the Great Depression and paid for my mom’s teacher training.
A generation earlier, my great-grandfather supported his family delivering the mail from Westerly to Newport, R.I., lugging his loads first onto a train and then a ferry. He got the position after the Civil War, when the government created jobs for Union Army vets like him by expanding free delivery service.
Today, military reservists and veterans make up more than 18 percent of the Postal Service’s 640,000 employees. Although these jobs sustain families and communities across the country, the Trump task force calls for eliminating postal workers’ right to collective bargaining, which would very likely lower their pay.
So what’s behind this cutthroat cost-cutting?
The Trump task force report claims that the Postal Service is a financial disaster. In fact, its operations are funded through postage, not tax dollars. Every day, the Postal Service delivers more than 400 million letters and packages at rates that are just a fraction of those in other rich countries — including the European nations that have privatized their postal operations.
The “losses” the Trump task force points to are a result of a congressional mandate to pay about $5.5 billion per year to fund future retiree health benefits 75 years in advance — a burden no other agency or company faces or could afford. Without this burden, as the task force itself makes clear, the Postal Service would have been in the black for the past six years.
While refusing to end this onerous mandate, the task force opposes the post office’s efforts to raise new revenue. The Postal Service has proposed expanding into check-cashing, bill payment and other financial services that could raise new revenue. These would be low-cost, reliable options for consumers without access to traditional banks, and they are services that post offices in other countries have provided for many years. But the task force opposes this move, arguing that the Postal Service can’t compete effectively with banks for this business.
This year, as my family gathers for our traditional Christmas Eve meal, we will remember our ancestors’ hard work — and hope that our country’s Postal Service will continue to thrive for many more generations.
Source : https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/18/opinion
ARAMEX “Transforming” The Way Packages Are Being Delivered
December 18, 2018
Aramex, the global provider of comprehensive logistics and transportation solutions, has launched ‘Aramex Fleet’, a crowd-based delivery platform that connects Saudi nationals to flexible last mile delivery work to leverage on Saudi Arabia’s sharing economy and support strong demand for Aramex services in the Kingdom.
Aramex is the first among major international logistics and transportation providers to integrate this service in the MENA region, with plans to introduce the platform to at least 10 more countries over the next 12 months.
Commenting on the launch, Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al Nowaiser, General Manager of Aramex in Saudi Arabia, said:
“We are excited to announce the launch of ‘Aramex Fleet’ in Saudi Arabia – Aramex’s largest market in the Middle East and a country which is leading the growth of the sharing economy in the region. ‘Aramex Fleet’ will help to boost economic growth in Saudi Arabia by empowering Saudi nationals through crowdsourced employment opportunities and flexible working hours, whilst increasing last mile delivery capacity for customers during busy periods.”
Khalid Jamjoum, Head of Global Capacity Planning and Last Mile Innovation at Aramex, added: “We are proud to launch a crowdsourced delivery model that will allow us to tap into the growing sharing economy, which is transforming the way packages are being delivered today. This on-demand supply will enable us to seamlessly scale-up during peak seasons to absorb more business and maintain our service levels. Our digital transformation strategy focuses on leveraging lean, tech-driven models such as ‘Aramex Fleet’ to tackle capacity constraints and enhance last mile delivery. We look forward to announcing further innovations in the near future”.
Aramex Fleet follows a network-based business model that provides Saudi nationals (‘Fleeters’) with income per successful delivery. All Fleeters are on-boarded through a dedicated digital platform, which provides security and transparency by recording names, vehicle types, and license plate numbers.
Source : https://postandparcel.info/99293/news/innovation
NZ Post to deliver gifts and goods to charities
December 17, 2018
NZ Post has teamed up with New Zealand meal-kit home-delivery service provider My Food Bag to collect and deliver gifts and food to charities all over the country.
My Food Bag provides customers with ingredients and recipes to cook meals. Customers are encouraged to fill their empty My Food Bag boxes with gifts and food, which is then collected by NZ Post and delivered to charities all over New Zealand.
The initiative, which is called the My Christmas Gift campaign, proved to be a great success in 2017, with more than 1,500 boxes distributed by NZ Post. Over 20,000 items were collected and delivered to local charities including the City Mission and the Red Cross.
“Our partnership with NZ Post to make our My Christmas Gift campaign happen is something we are particularly proud of,” said Kevin Bowler, CEO of My Food Bag. “Last year we were overwhelmed by the generosity of customers, who donated thousands of food and gift items to families in need. We look forward to making Christmas a little bit brighter for many more families across New Zealand this festive season.”
Source : https://www.postalandparceltechnologyinternational.com/news
Australia’s biggest parcel delivery day expected tomorrow ahead of Christmas
December 16, 2018
Australia Post is anticipating tomorrow will be the biggest parcel delivery day in the country’s history, with our team of hardworking posties, drivers and mail and parcel sorters delivering close to three million parcels on Monday.
Since October, Australia Post has experienced an unprecedented number of deliveries, with more than 10 million parcels delivered last week alone. The surge in volumes follows popular online shopping festivals such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday, with parcel deliveries growing more than 30 per cent during the sales.
Australia Post Group Chief Operating Officer Bob Black said more and more customers are turning to online shopping ahead of a busy Christmas because it offered more convenience.
“Tomorrow will the biggest delivery day in Australia Post’s history, with close to three million parcels moving through our network, as Australia’s love for online shopping continues to grow,” Mr Black said.
“The most popular Christmas gifts among Australian online shoppers include toys and games, fashion and jewellery, and homewares and appliances along with health and beauty products.
“As well as record parcel numbers, Christmas cards are popular too, with posties delivering millions of Christmas letters and greeting cards during December.”
Mr Black said Australians were shopping mainly from local retailers, with the falling Australian dollar helping increase the proportion of domestic online purchases to more than 70 per cent of delivered parcels.
Overall, Australia Post is expecting to deliver over 40 million parcels this December, exceeding the 37 million parcels delivered in December last year.
To help customers get their Christmas gifts in time Australia Post :
Is keeping over 170 retail outlets open longer
Installed a further 13 parcel lockers taking the total to 343
Has 13 air freighters operating every night for Express services and 16,000 vehicles operating daily
Has hired close to 3000 extra people to deal with record volumes.
For last minute shoppers Australia Post’s range of Express Post will help get their Christmas gifts to their destination to more than 9.5 million addresses.
Source : https://newsroom.auspost.com.au/article
Poste Italiane to Donate Abandoned Parcels to the Needy
December 15, 2018
Poste Italiane is re-gifting abandoned parcels to the needy this Christmas. The Italian postal operator has partnered with charity Caritas to find new homes for undeliverable parcels.
Last year Poste Italiane disposed of 15,000 parcels. These undeliverable items were destroyed, but this year they will find their way to those in need thanks to a partnership with Caritas.
Before Poste Italiane classifies a package as abandoned, it is stored for a period ranging from six to 12 months. Then it is opened and checked to see if there are any clues that can be traced back to the sender or addressee. If the package is still undeliverable, then it’s considered abandoned.
Poste Italiane also has to deal with packages that have been refused by the addressee, which for whatever reason can’t be returned to sender.
Under the new partnership, undeliverable and refused packages will be opened, and any useful items will be forwarded to Caritas’s network of supermarkets for the needy.
At these special supermarkets, families in difficulty can access basic necessities free of charge.
Well done Poste Italiane - a worthy initiative that should help the needy.
Source : http://www.thepostalhub.com/blog
‘Rock-solid strike’ on the Isle of Man
December 14 2018
Some 200 Isle of Man postal workers walked out on strike for the second time this morning – and the action is “rock-solid once again all across the island,” according to CWU deputy general secretary postal Terry Pullinger.
Speaking from the “bitterly cold” picket line – alongside dozens of striking Manx mailmen and women – Terry sharply criticised statements made by Isle of Man Treasury Minister and the Post Office Chair yesterday which had, he said: “Made matters worse.”
At the isle of Man Post Office board’s request, Terry and his negotiating team attended discussions with the business yesterday, but the fundamental issues in dispute were not adequately addressed, he reports, and the remarks made by the Minister Alf Cannan and company chair Julie Edge, while the talks were taking place, were “extremely unhelpful,” said our DGSP.
Local broadcaster Manx Radio reported the Minister Alf Cannan making the puzzling suggestion that the island’s postal workers were being “lured into a trap” and advising workers to “not be influenced by broader issues in the UK,” while company chair Julie Edge told the station’s Mandate programme that the union of having “not proposed any workable alternative,” to her plan.
These remarks had, Terry pointed out, “demonstrated that the real decision makers were not in the negotiating room” and “our members’ anger and resolve has increased as a consequence.”
The dispute arose out of plans by the isle of Man Post Office Board to close the existing pension scheme to new entrants and recruit new staff on lower pay rates – plans which would, the CWU has pointed out, introduce two-tier employment into the business.
But management are also gunning for existing employees too, with proposals to cut the benefits in the current scheme as well, award a below-inflation 1 per cent pay settlement, buy out a range of allowances and move away from long-established voluntary redundancy arrangements, while they also want to reduce delivery days from six to five per week.
After repeated attempts by the CWU to engage the business in meaningful negotiations failed, members of the branch called for a strike ballot which returned a 93 per cent ‘Yes’ majority.
After the ballot result was announced, the union made further efforts to seek a resolution, despite strenuous objections from the CWU and from members of the public, the island’s seat of government, the Tynwald, voted on an ‘in-principle’ basis to permit IoMPO to make the USO and pension changes – making strike action inevitable.
“Members here have responded magnificently,” said Terry, “there was a brilliant turnout on the first day of the strike and it’s been rock-solid once again all across the island today.”
Our DGSP warmly praised the members for their “strength, unity and determination” and also added his thanks to branches all over the UK who have tweeted messages of support and solidarity.
No further action is planned before Christmas, and the union hopes that this period will “allow some common sense to prevail” among the company’s senior leadership.
“If not, then further action will take place in the New Year.”
Source : https://www.cwu.org/news
Japan Post finally faces deep structural reforms
The postal service needs to survive with less help from banking and insurance
December 13, 2018
How can national postal services survive after privatisation, deprived of government support? That is a question facing many countries’ operators, including that of Japan, which the government has privatised and is slowly selling off until it owns just a third by 2022. The process has trundled along slowly since being forced through parliament in 2005 by Junichiro Koizumi, the then-prime minister.
All post offices must contend with drastic declines in letter-writing. In Japan the population is shrinking to boot. Nonetheless, Japan Post is obliged to keep its full network of 24,000 outlets, greater even than the number of elementary schools or convenience stores. Many post offices are in rural and hard-to-reach corners of the archipelago, serving as hubs for ageing local communities.
Source : https://www.economist.com/business/2018/12/15
No 102 -2018
Formulated by UNI Apro Post and Logistics Sector
Spending time with family is the nation’s favourite Christmas tradition. December 17, 2018
Japan Post to invest $2.6 billion in U.S. insurer Aflac.
December 16, 2018.
Starbucks to expand coffee delivery in the US.
December 14, 2018.
Demography Collective Agreement at Deutsche Post AG again significantly improved. December 14, 2018.
Package power. More online shopping means more deliveries. December 13, 2018.
Posti’s new record: 1.3 million parcels last week.
December 13, 2018.
Spending time with family is the nation’s favourite Christmas tradition
December 17, 2018
Spending time with family is the nation’s favourite Christmas tradition (28 per cent), followed by eating Christmas dinner (23 per cent) and decorating the Christmas tree, along with helping the homeless and enjoying time off work, according to a study commissioned by Parcelforce Worldwide.
Over six in ten (61 per cent) people voted Christmas as their favourite seasonal holiday. Those living in the North East are the most festive in the UK with seven in ten residents voting Christmas their favourite seasonal holiday. Northern Ireland, Yorkshire & Humber, Scotland and the South West complete the top five festive regions, respectively.
The most unusual gifts people have sent for Christmas include: a driftwood Labrador, a painted concrete gnome, a personalised wooden spoon, a Victorian slipper-shaped bed pan, an experience day to walk with llamas, an ancestry DNA testing kit, an acre of the moon, a sprig of mistletoe, bagpipes and a personalised photo cushion.
Almost one in four (37 per cent) of those surveyed have some members of family living abroad. 40 per cent keep in touch with their family via Skype and 30 per cent via post. With that in mind, half (50 per cent) of people send Christmas presents abroad with Europe being the most popular destination, followed by North America and Australia. Just under four in ten (37 per cent) will send their parcels abroad a month in advance, with over ten per cent doing so earlier than this. 36 per cent send their parcels abroad two to three weeks before Christmas.
Some of the furthest destinations people have sent Christmas presents to include: Malawi, Bisbee in Arizona, Chiayaphum in Thailand, Alaska, Winnipeg in Canada, Timor, Namibia, Wollongong and the outback in Australia.
The survey also revealed that people do the majority of their Christmas shopping a month in advance of the big day (35 per cent). Almost one in four people (23 per cent) do their shopping two to three weeks before Christmas. Only one per cent leave it to the last minute and do their shopping on Christmas Eve.
One in six (16 per cent) make their own Christmas presents and 58 per cent send their gifts to others via a parcel carrier with a quarter using Parcelforce Worldwide services. Women are more likely to make their own Christmas gifts (22 per cent), compared to men (9 per cent).
A spokesperson from Parcelforce Worldwide said “It is heart-warming to see that spending time with family is the nation’s favourite Christmas tradition. With some families unfortunately unable to spend Christmas with all their loved ones, sending touching presents ahead of the big day is a great way to share the festive spirit – across the nation and the globe.”
Source : https://www.royalmailgroup.com/en/press-centre/press-releases
Japan Post to invest $2.6 billion in U.S. insurer Aflac
December 16, 2018
Japan Post Holdings Co is planning to invest about $2.6 billion in Aflac Inc, aiming to become the largest shareholder in the U.S. insurer, a person familiar with the matter said.
Japan Post, a conglomerate that spans postal delivery, banking and insurance services, plans to initially acquire a 7 to 8 percent stake in Aflac for about 300 billion yen ($2.6 billion), said the person.
Under the deal Japan Post can increase its stake to a maximum 20 percent in four years time, the person said. Aflac’s current largest shareholder is Vanguard Group Inc with a 8.77 percent stake, according to data from Refinitiv Eikon.
Aflac said in a statement it was engaged in discussions with Japan Post regarding a potential minority investment in Aflac but the discussions did not involve Aflac or any of its subsidiaries becoming a member of Japan Post Group.
Aflac did not elaborate further. A spokesman at Japan Post declined to comment.
The transaction, which is expected to be announced this month, will follow the agreement made in 2013 between Japan Post and Aflac which allows Aflac to sell its cancer insurance at Japan Post’s offices across Japan.
The news was earlier reported by the Nikkei business daily.
Source : https://japantoday.com/category/business
Starbucks to expand coffee delivery in the US
December 14, 2018
Starbucks plans to expand coffee delivery across the US with UberEats as part of a broader strategy to try to reach more customers.
The coffee chain, which has been facing slowing traffic to its domestic coffee shops, outlined its growth plans for investors gathered in New York.
Starbucks began testing delivery in Miami with UberEats in September and will begin offering it in nearly a quarter of its more than 8000 US company-operated stores early next year.
Delivery is becoming a source of added sales for many restaurant chains that have seen their dining room traffic erode. Many chains say delivery has attracted customers who don’t come in to eat.
There are unique challenges involved in delivery, including getting food to customers’ homes quickly and while still hot -- something that could be particularly problematic for coffee. Delivery fees also can be a turn-off for customers placing small orders.
Starbucks is farther ahead on delivery in China, where the service has been expanded to more than 2000 stores in 30 cities since the chain joined with a delivery unit of Alibaba Group Holding.
The company says it has solved some of the challenges delivery poses in China with splash-proof lids, delivery containers designed to keep drinks hot or cold and tamper-proof packaging seals.
Dedicated drivers in China promise to deliver Starbucks coffee in 30 minutes or less. The chain also is creating a virtual store that allows customers to use only one app to order gifts or products for themselves and have them delivered.
Starbucks has been working for more than a year to streamline its operations so it can focus on boosting customer traffic in the US and China, its two key markets. Starbucks has closed its Teavana mall stores, redeployed baristas’ duties, including having them clean after shops close, to allow them to focus more on customer service and partnered with Nestlé to market and sell much of its packaged coffee in supermarkets.
Starbucks-branded products have been developed for use in Nestlé’s Nespresso and Dolce Gusto single-serve coffee machines.
The company last month said it would lay off approximately 5 per cent of its global corporate workforce as it seeks to become more nimble and focused.
“We’re simplifying the business to accelerate the velocity of innovation, “ Starbucks chief executive Kevin Johnson said in an interview Thursday.
The company is trying to develop more cold drinks, which now make up 50 per cent of its beverage sales. The chain plans to have nitro cold brew on tap in all of its US company-operated stores by the end of fiscal 2019.
Mr Johnson pointed to the company’s fiscal fourth quarter, when the company posted progress in every operating metric it tracks globally, as proof that its moves are beginning to pay off.
However, sales growth in the US beat expectations due to an increase in average ticket. Getting more customers in its doors remains a challenge, the company has said. The coffee market has become increasingly crowded in recent years, with new entrants on the high end and lower-cost rivals such as Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. offering improved espresso-based drinks.
Activist investor William Ackman in October disclosed at 1.1 per cent stake in Starbucks and has said he agrees with the changes Starbucks is making. Mr. Johnson declined to comment on the nature of any meetings he’s had with Mr Ackman.
Source : https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/news
Demography Collective Agreement at Deutsche Post AG again significantly improved
December 14, 2018
The United Services Trade Union (ver.di) and Deutsche Post AG have again significantly improved the demography collective agreement concluded in 2011. The entitlement of employees to semi-retirement will be extended from the current six to ten years in the future. It can therefore be taken in the future from the age of 55 years. "The work at the post office is very exhausting. The demography collective agreement is very popular with employees, as it reduces the burden on end-of-career life for a long period of time while eliminating sensitive pension discounts. The expansion now from six to ten years is so far unique in the tariff landscape, "said deputy ver.di chairman Andrea Kocsis.
The demography collective agreement includes a time value account, in which the employees contribute remuneration components, and a regulation on partial retirement. With entry into the partial retirement, the working time is halved
immediately. At the end of partial retirement before retirement, part-time retirement is an exemption phase from the value assets individually accumulated by the employees in a time value account. The part-time wage in partial retirement is based on income up to 87 percent of the net remuneration before partial retirement, the pension contributions are increased to 90 percent of the contributions before partial retirement. The collective agreements do not include a collective maximum number of employees who can claim partial retirement.
Deutsche Post AG currently has over 160,000 employees, around 130,000 of whom are salaried employees. Around 26,000 of them now have a time value account and 4,200 are already in the previous six-year partial retirement scheme.
The demography collective agreement of Deutscher Post AG and ver.di was honored in 2013 with the Innovation Prize of the German Economy. The new tariff improvements now made come into effect on 1 March 2019.
Source : https://psl.verdi.de/presse/
Package power. More online shopping means more deliveries
December. 13, 2018
If you think the Postal Service is delivering a lot of packages this holiday season, wait until you see what happens next year — and the year after that.
Shoppers are expected to spend $123 billion on online holiday purchases in 2018, up 16.6 percent from one year earlier, according to data from eMarketer. In 2016, online shoppers spent $91.15 billion during the holidays.
This is driving major increases in package volumes for USPS and other shippers.
The Postal Service expects to deliver 900 million packages during the holidays this year, up from about 870 million in 2017 and 750 million two years ago.
A total of 2 billion packages are expected to be handled by USPS and other shippers this holiday season.
The numbers are likely to keep going up for the foreseeable future.
“It is entirely plausible that there will be 4 to 6 billion packages” handled by the Postal Service and other shippers five years from now during the holiday season, according to Brittain Ladd, an online commerce and supply chain analyst.
“Then in 10 years, that number could be between 6 and 8 billion,” he said.
To keep up with the increases, USPS in recent years has invested in new equipment and vehicles and added Sunday package deliveries.
The organization also hires seasonal help, although that can be challenging during a tight labor market.
“You have to be more creative in how you recruit holiday help. We’ve been very successful. Our brand helps us. We have a very trusted brand,” said Kevin McAdams, the Postal Service’s delivery operations vice president.
Surging package volumes also present shippers with logistical challenges, including the need to satisfy customers who want their orders as quickly as possible.
To become more efficient, USPS has introduced methods like dynamic routing, a technique that puts package delivery points in the most efficient, logical order.
“Technology opens up a world of possibilities,” McAdams said. “There’s a tremendous opportunity using technology to facilitate improvements in last-mile delivery.”
The closure of many brick-and-mortar retail businesses will also drive more growth in online shopping in the coming years, especially among consumers in rural areas.
DeeDee Lynch, a Snyder, TX, resident, is hitting the “buy” button on retail sites more often during this holiday season because many chain stores in her area have closed.
“When you live in a metropolitan area, you have so many more choices. But not when you live in a small town,” she said.
Source : https://link.usps.com/2018/12/13
Posti’s new record: 1.3 million parcels last week
December 13, 2018
The Christmas season of online stores was launched at the end of November on Black Friday and continued on Cyber Monday. They were preceded by the Singles’ Day on November 11 that has been adopted in Finland as well. Posti’s record-high parcel volumes indicate that Finns were utilizing the attractive seasonal discounts of Finnish and foreign online stores.
“Nearly 1.3 million parcels passed through Posti last week. It is the highest parcel volume in one week during the entire history of Posti. Last year’s record – 1.2 million parcels – was made closer to Christmas, which means that the busiest parcel week is still ahead of us,” says Turkka Kuusisto, Vice President, Parcel & eCommerce at Posti.
During the peak season, Posti employees work in three shifts, 24 hours a day. Posti’s logistics centers are running up to seven days a week until the end of the Christmas season.
Posti is prepared for a record-breaking peak season
Posti is prepared for a record-breaking peak season in online retail. Among other things, Posti has doubled the number of Parcel Lockers, which are a popular delivery option for consumers. The 1000th Posti Parcel Locker went into service on November 12 at Helsinki’s Central Railway Station. The peak parcel season will also be expedited by more than a hundred pickup points open for the holiday period. Throughout the season, Posti will also be delivering items for pickup on weekends.
When picking up parcels, we recommend utilizing Posti’s own shops’ longer opening hours with fewer customers. If the actual pickup point of the parcel is full, the parcel will be flexibly delivered to another nearby pickup point in order to avoid delaying the parcel delivery. More than 100 temporary pickup points are available during the Christmas season.
A complete directory of Posti’s service points and their opening hours is available at posti.fi/kartta.
Parcels on their way by December 19
Parcels from domestic and foreign online stores will still make it to the recipients before Christmas. However, small items from Asia will not make it to the recipients before Christmas, since delivery times from China, for instance, may be several weeks.
Domestic parcels will reach their recipients by Christmas if they are mailed by December 19 by paying the postage fee in advance either online or through the OmaPosti application. You can leave a pre-paid parcel in any Parcel Locker or Posti outlet. Parcels should be brought to Posti outlets one day earlier, by December 18. Parcels to outside Europe must be mailed by December 7, to Europe by December 14, and to nearby countries, including Sweden and the Baltic countries, by December 17.
Source : https://www.posti.com/en/media/media-news/2018POSTAL NEWS
No 103 -2018
Formulated by UNI Apro Post and Logistics Sector
The Postal Worker’s Christmas. December 18, 2018.
ARAMEX “Transforming” The Way Packages Are Being Delivered. December 18, 2018.
NZ Post to deliver gifts and goods to charities.
December 17, 2018.
Australia’s biggest parcel delivery day expected tomorrow ahead of Christmas. December 16, 2018.
Poste Italiane to Donate Abandoned Parcels to the Needy. December 15, 2018.
‘Rock-solid strike’ on the Isle of Man. December 14, 2018.
The Postal Worker’s Christmas
December 18, 2018
My grandfather was part of a long tradition of postal workers who sacrificed Christmas Eve with their families to deliver holiday packages.
Every year on Christmas Eve, my extended family gathers for a meal that can be served at the last minute, whenever we’re ready to eat. This tradition of cold salads, ham balls and cookies goes back to my mom’s childhood.
My mother’s father was a North Dakota postal employee, so on Christmas Eve, she never knew when he would get home. He was determined to keep working, my mom would tell us, “until every Christmas package that could be delivered would be delivered.” He started working for the Postal Service in 1911, and family lore has it that he sometimes had to trudge through the snow on horseback to deliver the mail.
As in my grandfather’s day, today’s postal workers have a mandate to provide universal service, delivering mail and packages to every American household at uniform rates, no matter where they live. That mandate has helped bind our vast nation.
This principle of affordable universal service is under threat. This year, the White House Office of Management and Budget recommended selling the public Postal Service to a private, for-profit corporation.
On Dec. 4, a Trump task force on the postal system followed up with recommendations for partial privatization and other changes that would reduce services and raise delivery prices, particularly for rural communities.
Specifically, the task force urges the Postal Service to change its pricing system to maximize profits on commercial package deliveries. This would be a major blow to families who buy products online and live along high-cost delivery routes.
We’re not just talking about Hawaii and Alaska. Private carriers already impose surcharges, as high as $4.45 per item, for package deliveries to approximately 53 percent of the nation’s 42,000 ZIP codes. These surcharge areas are home to about 70 million people, according to our calculations, in rural areas, small towns and suburbs.
If the Trump task force has its way, customers in these areas would no longer be able to turn to the Postal Service for surcharge-free, lower-cost rates on most of these routes. Small businesses hoping to send mail or packages to these places would also suffer.
Rural communities would also be more likely to lose their local post offices. The task force wants to get rid of a law prohibiting the closing of rural post offices solely because they’re running a deficit. The Postal Service would also have the green light to reduce delivery days from six to five or even fewer days per week and expand the use of cluster mailboxes to replace door-to-door delivery.
These and other proposed service cuts would shrink the number of good postal jobs — jobs that have long supported this country’s middle class. My grandfather’s 47 years of steady Postal Service employment protected the family from the Great Depression and paid for my mom’s teacher training.
A generation earlier, my great-grandfather supported his family delivering the mail from Westerly to Newport, R.I., lugging his loads first onto a train and then a ferry. He got the position after the Civil War, when the government created jobs for Union Army vets like him by expanding free delivery service.
Today, military reservists and veterans make up more than 18 percent of the Postal Service’s 640,000 employees. Although these jobs sustain families and communities across the country, the Trump task force calls for eliminating postal workers’ right to collective bargaining, which would very likely lower their pay.
So what’s behind this cutthroat cost-cutting?
The Trump task force report claims that the Postal Service is a financial disaster. In fact, its operations are funded through postage, not tax dollars. Every day, the Postal Service delivers more than 400 million letters and packages at rates that are just a fraction of those in other rich countries — including the European nations that have privatized their postal operations.
The “losses” the Trump task force points to are a result of a congressional mandate to pay about $5.5 billion per year to fund future retiree health benefits 75 years in advance — a burden no other agency or company faces or could afford. Without this burden, as the task force itself makes clear, the Postal Service would have been in the black for the past six years.
While refusing to end this onerous mandate, the task force opposes the post office’s efforts to raise new revenue. The Postal Service has proposed expanding into check-cashing, bill payment and other financial services that could raise new revenue. These would be low-cost, reliable options for consumers without access to traditional banks, and they are services that post offices in other countries have provided for many years. But the task force opposes this move, arguing that the Postal Service can’t compete effectively with banks for this business.
This year, as my family gathers for our traditional Christmas Eve meal, we will remember our ancestors’ hard work — and hope that our country’s Postal Service will continue to thrive for many more generations.
Source : https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/18/opinion
ARAMEX “Transforming” The Way Packages Are Being Delivered
December 18, 2018
Aramex, the global provider of comprehensive logistics and transportation solutions, has launched ‘Aramex Fleet’, a crowd-based delivery platform that connects Saudi nationals to flexible last mile delivery work to leverage on Saudi Arabia’s sharing economy and support strong demand for Aramex services in the Kingdom.
Aramex is the first among major international logistics and transportation providers to integrate this service in the MENA region, with plans to introduce the platform to at least 10 more countries over the next 12 months.
Commenting on the launch, Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al Nowaiser, General Manager of Aramex in Saudi Arabia, said:
“We are excited to announce the launch of ‘Aramex Fleet’ in Saudi Arabia – Aramex’s largest market in the Middle East and a country which is leading the growth of the sharing economy in the region. ‘Aramex Fleet’ will help to boost economic growth in Saudi Arabia by empowering Saudi nationals through crowdsourced employment opportunities and flexible working hours, whilst increasing last mile delivery capacity for customers during busy periods.”
Khalid Jamjoum, Head of Global Capacity Planning and Last Mile Innovation at Aramex, added: “We are proud to launch a crowdsourced delivery model that will allow us to tap into the growing sharing economy, which is transforming the way packages are being delivered today. This on-demand supply will enable us to seamlessly scale-up during peak seasons to absorb more business and maintain our service levels. Our digital transformation strategy focuses on leveraging lean, tech-driven models such as ‘Aramex Fleet’ to tackle capacity constraints and enhance last mile delivery. We look forward to announcing further innovations in the near future”.
Aramex Fleet follows a network-based business model that provides Saudi nationals (‘Fleeters’) with income per successful delivery. All Fleeters are on-boarded through a dedicated digital platform, which provides security and transparency by recording names, vehicle types, and license plate numbers.
Source : https://postandparcel.info/99293/news/innovation
NZ Post to deliver gifts and goods to charities
December 17, 2018
NZ Post has teamed up with New Zealand meal-kit home-delivery service provider My Food Bag to collect and deliver gifts and food to charities all over the country.
My Food Bag provides customers with ingredients and recipes to cook meals. Customers are encouraged to fill their empty My Food Bag boxes with gifts and food, which is then collected by NZ Post and delivered to charities all over New Zealand.
The initiative, which is called the My Christmas Gift campaign, proved to be a great success in 2017, with more than 1,500 boxes distributed by NZ Post. Over 20,000 items were collected and delivered to local charities including the City Mission and the Red Cross.
“Our partnership with NZ Post to make our My Christmas Gift campaign happen is something we are particularly proud of,” said Kevin Bowler, CEO of My Food Bag. “Last year we were overwhelmed by the generosity of customers, who donated thousands of food and gift items to families in need. We look forward to making Christmas a little bit brighter for many more families across New Zealand this festive season.”
Source : https://www.postalandparceltechnologyinternational.com/news
Australia’s biggest parcel delivery day expected tomorrow ahead of Christmas
December 16, 2018
Australia Post is anticipating tomorrow will be the biggest parcel delivery day in the country’s history, with our team of hardworking posties, drivers and mail and parcel sorters delivering close to three million parcels on Monday.
Since October, Australia Post has experienced an unprecedented number of deliveries, with more than 10 million parcels delivered last week alone. The surge in volumes follows popular online shopping festivals such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday, with parcel deliveries growing more than 30 per cent during the sales.
Australia Post Group Chief Operating Officer Bob Black said more and more customers are turning to online shopping ahead of a busy Christmas because it offered more convenience.
“Tomorrow will the biggest delivery day in Australia Post’s history, with close to three million parcels moving through our network, as Australia’s love for online shopping continues to grow,” Mr Black said.
“The most popular Christmas gifts among Australian online shoppers include toys and games, fashion and jewellery, and homewares and appliances along with health and beauty products.
“As well as record parcel numbers, Christmas cards are popular too, with posties delivering millions of Christmas letters and greeting cards during December.”
Mr Black said Australians were shopping mainly from local retailers, with the falling Australian dollar helping increase the proportion of domestic online purchases to more than 70 per cent of delivered parcels.
Overall, Australia Post is expecting to deliver over 40 million parcels this December, exceeding the 37 million parcels delivered in December last year.
To help customers get their Christmas gifts in time Australia Post :
Is keeping over 170 retail outlets open longer
Installed a further 13 parcel lockers taking the total to 343
Has 13 air freighters operating every night for Express services and 16,000 vehicles operating daily
Has hired close to 3000 extra people to deal with record volumes.
For last minute shoppers Australia Post’s range of Express Post will help get their Christmas gifts to their destination to more than 9.5 million addresses.
Source : https://newsroom.auspost.com.au/article
Poste Italiane to Donate Abandoned Parcels to the Needy
December 15, 2018
Poste Italiane is re-gifting abandoned parcels to the needy this Christmas. The Italian postal operator has partnered with charity Caritas to find new homes for undeliverable parcels.
Last year Poste Italiane disposed of 15,000 parcels. These undeliverable items were destroyed, but this year they will find their way to those in need thanks to a partnership with Caritas.
Before Poste Italiane classifies a package as abandoned, it is stored for a period ranging from six to 12 months. Then it is opened and checked to see if there are any clues that can be traced back to the sender or addressee. If the package is still undeliverable, then it’s considered abandoned.
Poste Italiane also has to deal with packages that have been refused by the addressee, which for whatever reason can’t be returned to sender.
Under the new partnership, undeliverable and refused packages will be opened, and any useful items will be forwarded to Caritas’s network of supermarkets for the needy.
At these special supermarkets, families in difficulty can access basic necessities free of charge.
Well done Poste Italiane - a worthy initiative that should help the needy.
Source : http://www.thepostalhub.com/blog
‘Rock-solid strike’ on the Isle of Man
December 14 2018
Some 200 Isle of Man postal workers walked out on strike for the second time this morning – and the action is “rock-solid once again all across the island,” according to CWU deputy general secretary postal Terry Pullinger.
Speaking from the “bitterly cold” picket line – alongside dozens of striking Manx mailmen and women – Terry sharply criticised statements made by Isle of Man Treasury Minister and the Post Office Chair yesterday which had, he said: “Made matters worse.”
At the isle of Man Post Office board’s request, Terry and his negotiating team attended discussions with the business yesterday, but the fundamental issues in dispute were not adequately addressed, he reports, and the remarks made by the Minister Alf Cannan and company chair Julie Edge, while the talks were taking place, were “extremely unhelpful,” said our DGSP.
Local broadcaster Manx Radio reported the Minister Alf Cannan making the puzzling suggestion that the island’s postal workers were being “lured into a trap” and advising workers to “not be influenced by broader issues in the UK,” while company chair Julie Edge told the station’s Mandate programme that the union of having “not proposed any workable alternative,” to her plan.
These remarks had, Terry pointed out, “demonstrated that the real decision makers were not in the negotiating room” and “our members’ anger and resolve has increased as a consequence.”
The dispute arose out of plans by the isle of Man Post Office Board to close the existing pension scheme to new entrants and recruit new staff on lower pay rates – plans which would, the CWU has pointed out, introduce two-tier employment into the business.
But management are also gunning for existing employees too, with proposals to cut the benefits in the current scheme as well, award a below-inflation 1 per cent pay settlement, buy out a range of allowances and move away from long-established voluntary redundancy arrangements, while they also want to reduce delivery days from six to five per week.
After repeated attempts by the CWU to engage the business in meaningful negotiations failed, members of the branch called for a strike ballot which returned a 93 per cent ‘Yes’ majority.
After the ballot result was announced, the union made further efforts to seek a resolution, despite strenuous objections from the CWU and from members of the public, the island’s seat of government, the Tynwald, voted on an ‘in-principle’ basis to permit IoMPO to make the USO and pension changes – making strike action inevitable.
“Members here have responded magnificently,” said Terry, “there was a brilliant turnout on the first day of the strike and it’s been rock-solid once again all across the island today.”
Our DGSP warmly praised the members for their “strength, unity and determination” and also added his thanks to branches all over the UK who have tweeted messages of support and solidarity.
No further action is planned before Christmas, and the union hopes that this period will “allow some common sense to prevail” among the company’s senior leadership.
“If not, then further action will take place in the New Year.”
Source : https://www.cwu.org/news
Japan Post finally faces deep structural reforms
The postal service needs to survive with less help from banking and insurance
December 13, 2018
How can national postal services survive after privatisation, deprived of government support? That is a question facing many countries’ operators, including that of Japan, which the government has privatised and is slowly selling off until it owns just a third by 2022. The process has trundled along slowly since being forced through parliament in 2005 by Junichiro Koizumi, the then-prime minister.
All post offices must contend with drastic declines in letter-writing. In Japan the population is shrinking to boot. Nonetheless, Japan Post is obliged to keep its full network of 24,000 outlets, greater even than the number of elementary schools or convenience stores. Many post offices are in rural and hard-to-reach corners of the archipelago, serving as hubs for ageing local communities.
Source : https://www.economist.com/business/2018/12/15