POSTAL NEWS
No 31-2021
Formulated by UNI Apro Post and Logistics Sector
1. UK Post Office: The quashing of historical convictions is a vital milestone. April 23, 2021.
2. DHL Express signs up for new Fiat electric delivery vans. April 23, 2021.
3. Manage remotely!? April 22, 2021.
4. Japan Post to sell part of Australia logistics business, book US$645m loss. April 20, 2021.
5. NZ Post courier initiative supports charities through connection. April 19, 2021.
1. UK Post Office: The quashing of historical convictions is a vital milestone
April 23, 2021
Thirty nine sub-postmasters who were wrongly prosecuted between 2003 to 2013 by the UK Post Office have had their criminal convictions overturned.
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The UK Post Office has said it sincerely apologises for serious failures in its historical conduct of prosecutions of postmasters, resulting in the Court of Appeal formally overturning 39 convictions – in uncontested appeals.
Post Office Chairman Tim Parker said: “The Post Office is extremely sorry for the impact on the lives of these postmasters and their families that was caused by historical failures.
“Post Office stopped prosecutions soon after its separation from Royal Mail a decade ago and has throughout this appeals process supported the overturning of the vast majority of convictions.
“We are contacting other postmasters and Post Office workers with criminal convictions from past private Post Office prosecutions that may be affected, to assist them to appeal should they wish. Post Office continues to reform its operations and culture to ensure such events can never happen again.
“The full ruling by the Court of Appeal judges published today is detailed, therefore Post Office will assess the Judgment carefully to understand what further action may be required.”
Post Office Chief Executive, Nick Read said: “I am in no doubt about the human cost of the Post Office’s past failures and the deep pain that has been caused to people affected.
“Many of those postmasters involved have been fighting for justice for a considerable length of time and sadly there are some who are not here to see the outcome today and whose families have taken forward appeals in their memory. I am very moved by their courage.
“The quashing of historical convictions is a vital milestone in fully and properly addressing the past as I work to put right these wrongs as swiftly as possible and there must be compensation that reflects what has happened.
“In addition, since arriving at the Post Office 18 months ago, my focus has been on resetting the culture at the Post Office and forging a substantive partnership with our postmasters. We are determined that they must come first in everything we do because without them there is no Post Office. We must transform the Post Office so that it can continue to provide essential services in local communities across the UK.”
The National Federation of SubPostmasters (NFSP) has said it welcomes today’s verdict. The organisation states.
“Last month we heard shocking revelations – including that Post Office Ltd (PO) may have destroyed evidence and that people within PO may have known Horizon was not reliable yet continued to prosecute.
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Today’s verdict may lead to claims against PO for malicious prosecution and for compensation. The NFSP believes that every victim of the Horizon scandal should be appropriately compensated. As the shareholder of PO, Government needs to step up and fund any such compensation.
Further, any information on what PO and Fujitsu provided to Government about the reliability of Horizon, should be released as it is in the public interest.
The NFSP challenged PO many times on the reliability of Horizon and was always told that the system was reliable. Clearly it was not the case that Horizon was reliable and the signs are that many within PO knew that.
The NFSP should have done more under its previous leadership to challenge PO privately and in public and to prevent people from falling victim to this extended miscarriage of justice. We can’t change the decisions of the past, but the NFSP is committed to ensuring that nothing like the Horizon scandal ever happens again.”
Source : https://postandparcel.info/137494/news/parcel
2. DHL Express signs up for new Fiat electric delivery vans
April 23, 2021
DHL Express has announced a partnership with Fiat Professional, purchasing the first 100 units of the OEM’s new e-Ducato. The large vans are 100% electric and have a range of more than 200km, making them well suited for last-mile logistics. In line with the recently launched DPDHL Group Sustainability Roadmap, DHL Express plans to have more than 14,000 electric vans in operation in Europe by 2030 to reduce carbon emissions.
“We strongly believe that the future of last-mile logistics is electric,” said Alberto Nobis, CEO of DHL Express Europe. “To fulfill our purpose of connecting people and improving lives, we have committed to getting greener and cleaner in what we do every single day. By adding the e-Ducatos to our fleet, we take the next important step to reach our goal of
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electrifying the major part of our last-mile delivery fleet. With Fiat Professional, we found what we were looking for: state-of-the-art technology and powerful batteries that enable us to reach beyond 200km with one charge to deliver our customers their express shipments – fast and green.”
DHL’s European fleet currently uses around 500 electric vans, mainly operating in urban regions, and 14,000 non-electric vehicles. Due to the high customer demand for international express deliveries, the company expects its European last-mile fleet to grow to approximately 20,000 vans by 2030. To transform its sustainability strategy into reality, it has committed to 60% of its fleet operating on electricity by the end of the current decade (approximately 14,000 vehicles).
Together with Fiat Professional, the e-Ducato was trialed through tests in different real-world operating conditions such as very low temperatures, extreme slopes and long distances, to check the vehicle’s response to the whole range of DHL usage patterns.
The e-Ducato was manufactured by Stellantis, a light commercial vehicle maker formed at the start of 2021 through the merger of Fiat Chrysler and PSA. For Eric Laforge, head of LCV Enlarged Europe at Stellantis, DHL Express’s adoption of the van is an important win: “We’re proud that a player as important as DHL Express has chosen the e-Ducato as part of such an ambitious goal.
With the e-Ducato, our task was not only to develop a sustainable product from both an economic and an environmental perspective, but most of all to provide a complete mobility solution for our partners.”
Source : https://www.parcelandpostaltechnologyinternational.com/news/vehicles-fleet
3. Manage remotely !?
April 22, 2021
Since the start of the health crisis, many supervisors have been teleworking. For La Poste, it is indeed a continuity of work. But for the staff concerned, this is a new profession to be created on a daily basis. Indeed, how now to manage teams remotely?
The distance does not allow the easiest collective and individual monitoring. The manager must reinvent himself every day to find the most suitable and relevant support methods for his teams. La Poste does not offer a typical support, except that of monitoring numbers, connections, practicing phoning and meetings on Teams.
However, psycho-social risks (PSR) also come from the overuse of digital means. La Poste must hear it!
For FO Com, La Poste must support teleworking supervisors in the performance of their missions and offer them qualitative human methods to support their teams. Because, what
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could be more important in the supervision if it is not to nourish the human relationship and the daily accompaniment?
Screens should not screen the human dimension of management!
Source : http://www.focom-laposte.fr/
4. Japan Post to sell part of Australia logistics business, book US$645m loss
April 20, 2021
[TOKYO] Japan Post Holdings has decided to sell part of Australian logistics arm Toll Holdings' business to an investment fund and book a special loss of US$645.46 million, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Tuesday.
Japan Post will sell the operations in Australia and New Zeland to Australia's Allegro Funds for about 1 billion yen (S$12.2 million) and assume billions of dollars worth of debt, the Nikkei reported.
Japan Post was not immediately available for comment. The company is set to make an announcement on Wednesday, the Nikkei said, adding that most of the extraordinary loss, for the year ended in March, would be offset by tax reductions from other factors.
In 2015, the Japanese company acquired Toll for US$5.05 billion, making an ambitious bet to diversify overseas. But two years after the deal, it had to write down the bulk of Toll's value due to its weak performance.
Toll reported a A$10 million (S$10.3 million) operating loss for the nine months ended December 2020.
Source : https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/consumer
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5. NZ Post courier initiative supports charities through connection
April 19, 2021
NZ Post is giving selected charities and social enterprises, working on projects to connect people and improve belonging and inclusion, a helping hand with the rollout of a new community initiative offering free courier products.
Under the initiative, 10 community organisations will be supplied with up to 34,000 free domestic courier services for one year – with one organisation winning an extra year of free courier services.
“We’re pleased to be able to make a difference in local communities by helping people reach out, communicate and deliver with others through this new initiative,” NZ Post Sustainability Manager Dawn Baggaley says.
“We’re looking for a range of deserving programmes which help people connect and feel included; whether that be delivering goods to people without access or sending products for companies who employ people from marginalised groups.
“We want to hear from you and encourage all social enterprises and charities to enter.”
NZ Post previously ran the Community Post programme which was established in 1998 to offer postage-included envelopes to non-profit organisations throughout the country.
CanTeen, National Heart Foundation of New Zealand, Age Concern New Zealand Inc and Dementia New Zealand Charitable Trust were just some of the organisations who benefited previously from the Community Post programme.
“As mail declines and our courier services grow, we need to consider how we can continue to help community organisations prosper.
“By offering this new initiative it gives groups the chance to reallocate some of their administration costs into core community services or increase the reach of their programmes.”
Community groups can enter online from today (April 19) to April 30, 2021.
Ten charities and social enterprises will win free courier products for one year with a public vote (from June 7 to June 15, 2021) to determine which one of the 10 winners will win an extra year of products – to be announced on June 28, 2021.
Source: https://www.nzpost.co.nz/about-us/media-centre/media-releasePOSTAL NEWS
No 32-2021
Formulated by UNI Apro Post and Logistics Sector
1. GLS Belgium tests small electric van in Brussels. April 23, 2021.
2. DeJoy expects feedback, but also consensus, from USPS nominees on 10-year plan. April 21, 2021.
3. Older and retired London postal workers – do you have a story to tell? April 21, 2021.
4. Emirates Post: We are proud to have supported the national vaccination programme. April 20, 2021.
5. PostNL shareholders adopt 2020 financial statements and approve all resolutions. April 20, 2021.
1. GLS Belgium tests small electric van in Brussels
April 23, 2021
Since February, GLS has been testing a Musoshi electric mini van in the Brussels city centre.
The Bonzai three-wheeler has a range of up to 155 km and a load capacity of 400 kg or 1.5 m3. The small vehicle can engage in a bit of creative parking too, which is crucial in city centres.
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As part of its ThinkGreen sustainability program, the entire GLS group aims to electrify its delivery fleet. GLS currently uses a variety of models of bicycles, scooters and electric vans, electric trucks, natural gas and other eco-friendly vehicles.
The mini electric van from Musoshi will be tested for several months, then a larger model from the range that will be put to the test.
Source : http://www.thepostalhub.com/blog
2. DeJoy expects feedback, but also consensus, from USPS nominees on 10-year plan
April 21, 2021
Everyone in charge of how the Postal Service operates agrees the agency can’t keep running the way it has been for the past decade. But few can agree on what the solution looks like.
While nearly every group invested in postal operations — USPS management, its inspector general, unions, Congress and associations — agree on what the underlying problems are, few can agree on a long-term plan to fix these problems.
The status quo, meanwhile, would lead the agency to run out of cash eventually. USPS has about $25 billion cash on hand, according to recent Treasury Department data, but Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said in a recent interview that the agency could run out of cash by the end of 2022.
A compromise to fix what’s ailing USPS, however, could come into focus with new leadership entering the picture. More than a month after USPS released its 10-year plan to shift its operating model onto a more sustainable path, the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will hear from President Joe Biden’s three nominees to serve on the USPS Board of Governors on Thursday.
The nominees are former Deputy Postmaster General Ron Stroman, Anton Hajjar, the former general counsel for the American Postal Workers Union and Amber Reynolds, an election administration expert and CEO of the National Vote at Home Institute.
These nominees, if confirmed, would play a significant role in getting the 10-year reform plan off the ground and would shape how USPS improves its unsustainable business model. The board can also elect to name a new postmaster general or deputy postmaster general.
DeJoy, in an interview earlier this month, said he would welcome having a full Board of Governors for the first time in at least six years.
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“The full board should have been constituted a long time ago. There was a time when there were no members on the board, which is really kind of hard to believe,” DeJoy said in the April 5 interview.
That period occurred during the Obama administration when the Senate didn’t move forward with any of the White House’s nominees to the board. The board lost its quorum in 2014, and only gained enough presidentially appointed governors to regain a quorum in 2019.
While USPS has already released its 10-year plan, DeJoy said he would welcome input from new governors. He said the plan, however, focuses on issues and solutions with a broad base of support —and doubted the plan would face opposition.
“Who’s against Medicare integration? Not too many people, right? Who’s against the pricing authority that’s been established by our regulators? Not too many people. Who’s against reducing employee turnover in the pre-career ranks? Not too many people. Who’s against growing the business and repointing the organization towards the package business … not to provide profitability — this is a break-even plan — but to cover our costs to continue to deliver mail? I don’t think too many people would be against that,” DeJoy said.
DeJoy added: “If anybody is against any of those, I’m happy to listen. We have a process — there will be nine board members, and they could vote against any one of those things — but it doesn’t seem logical to me that people would want to get in the way of this plan if they’re truly interested in trying to steer the organization in the right direction.”
Source : https://federalnewsnetwork.com/agency-oversight/2021/04
3. Older and retired London postal workers – do you have a story to tell?
April 21, 2021
If you worked in the London postal service at any time from the 1950s onwards, the arts and education charity digital:works is asking for your help with a new learning project for schoolchildren.
Organiser Matthew Rosenberg describes the initiative as “intergenerational oral history” and explains: “With training and support from digital:works and the Postal Museum, Year Six children from two London schools will be conducting and filming oral history interviews with 24 older and retired postal workers to record their working lives.”
The completed interviews will go to local and London-wide archives and will be make into an educational documentary film that will be shown at a launch event and at schools, communities and libraries.
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CWU London region is fully supportive of the project and regional secretary Ian Murphy is asking for volunteers who can spare an hour or so to be among the 24 interviewees – all of whom will be invited to a special launch screening and will receive a copy of the film on DVD.
The pupils are all in the 10 and 11-year old age group and the interviews are scheduled to take place during June 2021.
Ian says: “This is a great idea, which will provide a fascinating piece of social history as well as a great opportunity for some of our older and retired members to tell their stories to an engaged audience.
“If you worked in the London postal service at any point from the 1950s onwards, then please get in touch me on 07860 644910 or with Matthew direct either by email mat@digital-works.co.uk or call him on 07949 107023.”
Source : https://www.cwu.org/news
4. Emirates Post: We are proud to have supported the national vaccination programme
April 20, 2021 Emirates Post has announced that 100% of its front-liners have been vaccinated against COVID-19.
Following the directives of the UAE’s leadership to lead the implementation of necessary measures to curb the spread of Covid-19 and ensure the health and safety of the nation, Emirates Post launched an internal vaccination program at the beginning of 2021.
This program facilitated access for its staff to receive the inoculation and as a result, Emirates Post is one of the first postal entities in the world to have all eligible customer-facing staff fully vaccinated against the coronavirus.
This milestone, along with the company’s extensive range of COVID-19 response measures, is another stage in its commitment to keeping employees, customers, and the community safe.
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The aim is to provide employees reporting to duty with an increased sense of security and give customers confidence and peace of mind when using Emirates Post services.
Peter Somers, CEO of Emirates Post said: “We extend our sincere appreciation and gratitude to the leadership of the UAE and the relevant authorities for their support in making the vaccine accessible to the community. Significant steps were taken to ensure the wellbeing of our employees as well as making sure our customers are confident and reassured when visiting our Customer Happiness Centers or when receiving their parcels and mail from our couriers across the country”.
“The UAE has successfully achieved its target of having more than half the population vaccinated against COVID-19 within the first quarter of 2021 and at Emirates Post, we are proud to have supported the national vaccination programme. I thank the team for choosing to vaccinate and supporting our efforts in reaching this milestone,” Somers continued.
Members of the community will be able to recognize Emirates Post’s vaccinated staff as they will be proudly wearing an Emirates Post ‘I’ve been Vaccinated’ pin.
Source : https://postandparcel.info/137429/news/e-commerce
5. PostNL shareholders adopt 2020 financial statements and approve all resolutions
April 20, 2021
The Hague, the Netherlands, 20 April 2021 – Today, the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (AGM) adopted PostNL NV’s 2020 financial statements and approved the dividend proposal of €0.28 per share over 2020. Nienke Meijer and Koos Timmermans were appointed as members of the Supervisory Board for a period of four years.
In addition, the AGM adopted the following resolutions:
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• To discharge the members of PostNL’s Board of Management and Supervisory Board from liability in respect of their actions in 2020 insofar as these are apparent from the 2020 financial statements or communicated to the AGM.
• Positive advice regarding the remuneration report as included in the Annual Report 2020
• Reappointment of Ernst & Young Accountants LLP as auditor for the year 2021, and appointment of KPMG Accountants NV as auditor for the years 2022, 2023 and 2024
• Adoption of the remuneration policy for the Board of Management and the Supervisory Board
• Amendments to the Articles of Association of PostNL N.V.
• To designate the Board of Management as the body authorised to issue ordinary shares until 20 October 2022. This authority will be limited to a maximum of 10% of issued capital at the time of issue.
• To designate the Board of Management as the body authorised to restrict or exclude pre-emption rights in the event of an issue of ordinary shares until 20 October 2022. This authority will be limited to a maximum of 10% of issued capital at the time of issue.
• To authorise the Board of Management to buy back PostNL shares until 20 October 2022. This authority will be limited to a maximum of 10% of issued capital as at 20 April 2021.
The relevant documents, including the presentation, resolutions and voting results, will be made available on PostNL’s website in the next few days.
Source : https://www.postnl.nl/en/about-postnl/press-news/press-releases/2021
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