POSTAL NEWS
No 57-2021
|
Formulated by UNI Apro Post and Logistics Sector 1. CORREOS Installs parcel drop-off machines in Post Offices. July 23, 2021. 2. Royal Mail could axe Saturday letter deliveries and signed for parcels. July 22, 2021. 3. FEDEX deepens its commitment to the India market. July 21 2021. 4. USPS Regulator Approves Price Spike but Warns Mail Slowdowns Could Have Worse-Than-Expected Impact. July 20, 2021. 5. Pathway to Change progress across Royal Mail’s smaller business units. July 19, 2021.
|
2. Royal Mail could axe Saturday letter deliveries and signed for parcels
July 22, 2021
Royal Mail could scrap signed-for parcels and Saturday letter deliveries in a bid to cut costs and compete with the likes of Amazon, Hermes and DPD.
The postal service is considering the changes as part of a six-month review of its ‘whole product offering’.
Currently Royal Mail, which was fully privatised in 2015, is required to deliver letters for a fixed price, six days per week under a universal service obligation.
But with fewer and fewer people sending letters, bosses argue this requirement is outdated and puts them at a disadvantage against its rivals.
Instead, the service is hoping to focus more on parcel deliveries, which have boomed thanks to a rise in online shopping during the pandemic.
However, Royal Mail bosses are
thought to be looking at plans to scrap tracked and signed-for packages because
they are expensive to deliver.
Customers are increasingly happy for parcels to be left with a neighbour or in a safe place, the Telegraph reports.
Royal Mail’s review has been launched by Royal Mail’s new CEO Simon Thompson, a former executive at Apple and Ocado.
Communications regulator Ofcom says it is in favour of plans to scrap Saturday letter deliveries in principle.
The change could save Royal Mail between £125million and £225million and would still meet consumer needs, it added.
But the regulator said any decision on changing the universal service obligation would be down to MPs.
Not everyone is in favour of the proposed changes, including the Communication Workers Union.
It says cuts to letter deliveries would be ‘unforgivable’ and fears scaling back of services would result in job losses.
Source : https://metro.co.uk/2021/07/22
3. FEDEX deepens its commitment to the India market
July 21 2021
FedEx Express India and Delhivery, a logistics and supply chain services company in India, have entered into equity and commercial agreements that will utilize their combined strengths to unlock India’s international trade potential.
Completion of this transaction is subject to closing conditions, including regulatory approval.
“India is a strategic priority for FedEx. This strategic alliance will support our long-term vision to grow our India business and serve customers seeking to expand in or enter the Indian market, as well as provide opportunities to develop product and technology solutions together with Delhivery for the benefit of our customers” said Raj Subramaniam, President and Chief Operating Officer of FedEx Corp.
Commenting on the announcement, Sahil Barua, Co-founder, and Chief Executive Officer, Delhivery, said, “We are excited to partner with FedEx and look forward to the synergies created between Delhivery’s capabilities in India and FedEx’s global network. Our aim is to bring new products and opportunities to Indian and global businesses and consumers through unique access to our networks, and our technology and engineering capabilities.
As part of the collaboration, FedEx will make a US$100 million equity investment in Delhivery, and the companies will enter into a long-term commercial agreement. FedEx Express will focus on international export and import services to and from India, and Delhivery will, in addition to FedEx, sell FedEx Express international products and services in the India market and provide pick-up and delivery services across India. FedEx will transfer certain assets pertaining to its domestic business in India to Delhivery.
Additionally, Don Colleran, President and CEO of FedEx Express will be nominated to join the Delhivery Board of Directors as a further sign of collaboration between the two companies.
This transaction combines the FedEx global network with Delhivery’s extensive pan-India network and technology solutions to bring the best of both worlds together.
The investment and the commercial agreement between the two companies deepens the FedEx commitment to the India market, and signals a significant step in providing innovative services and solutions that aim to improve speed, efficiency, and access for FedEx and Delhivery customers.
Source : https://postandparcel.info/139481/news/e-commerce
4. USPS Regulator Approves Price Spike but Warns Mail Slowdowns Could Have Worse-Than-Expected Impact
July 20, 2021
Commission criticizes postal management for faulty assumptions, insufficient testing and disregard for customers.
The U.S. Postal Service’s regulator is warning that the mailing agency’s case for slowing down mail rests upon “unproven assumptions,” suggesting USPS should revise its plan just one day after approving sharp rate increases.
The Postal Regulatory Commission on Tuesday did not flat out reject Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s plan to slow down delivery windows for some mail, but suggested the proposal was not fully thought out and its success was far from guaranteed. On Monday, it signed off on the Postal Service’s new pricing structure set to go into effect later this year. It will mark the first time postal management instituted higher-than-inflation rate hikes under a new authority the commission granted the Postal Service last year.
The slowdowns are expected to impact about 40% of First-Class mail. Postal officials have said USPS can no longer meet the standards it had set and the new windows would more accurately reflect what is already occurring. With the goal of slashing air transportation by 43% for First-Class mail, letters sent within the continental United States will take a maximum of five days under the new plan instead of the current limit of three days. Kristin Seaver, USPS’ chief retail and delivery officer, said earlier this year that 70% of First-Class mail would still be delivered within one-to-three days and the changes concern the “fringes of our network.”
Industry groups, postal unions, members of the public and some lawmakers have all pushed back against the mail slowdowns, with tens of thousands of individuals and organizations sending comments to the commission during its review. Critics of DeJoy’s plan have said slowing mail delivery while raising prices would accelerate ongoing declines in mail volumes and lead to further losses for the mailing agency.
The savings the Postal Service expects to realize are “paltry,” PRC Chairman Michael Kubayanda said, which “cast a shadow over the entire proposal.” The overall plan did not violate the mailing agency's legal obligations, the commission concluded, but the agency failed to prove its projections would be borne out.
USPS never pilot tested its proposed changes, which the commission found “problematic," and its assumptions regarding the efficiency of its network were "not grounded in reality." Even if events play out as postal management expects, the commission said the benefits may not outweigh the downsides.
“The commission finds that the amount of estimated annual cost savings, even if fully realized, does not indicate much improvement, if any, to the Postal Service’s current financial condition and the estimated cost savings from extending the service standard would be eliminated by additional costs associated with the growth in packages,” PRC wrote in its opinion. “Therefore, it is not clear that the tradeoff between financial viability and maintaining high-quality service standards is reasonable.”
DeJoy is simultaneously consolidating 18 mail processing plants, saying it will allow the Postal Service to allocate more resources toward its growing package business. A 2018 inspector general report found USPS realized just 5% of the $1.6 billion in savings it had projected from consolidations it implemented in the early 2010s. The agency successfully shuttered 141 plants in the first phase of its plan, but pulled the plug on its second phase to close an additional 82 plants when it was halfway through.
The Postal Regulatory Commission has held hearings on the plan in recent months, during which postal officials defended their proposals by promising to realize cost savings and to meet the agency's target of delivering 95% of mail on time for the first time in eight years. Mail delays have particularly plagued USPS over the last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, policies implemented by DeJoy and other factors, but management has said its new delivery windows would allow the agency to set more predictable outcomes for customers. Officials conceded they had not examined the impact of the proposed changes on rural versus urban populations, low income communities or elderly communities.
They said the agency did not solicit feedback on the changes from its customers, though an official added USPS regularly surveys its customers on general matters and therefore understands their needs.
In its opinion, the commission faulted USPS for not incorporating what feedback it did receive from customers regarding its plan. It also criticized the Postal Service for failing to illustrate how slower mail would impact volumes, saying its attempts to show that relationship were insufficient.
PRC said while the Postal Service's proposal "appears rational," the agency "has not confidently demonstrated that its plans will achieve these goals to the extent suggested in its proposal."
Under federal statute, the Postal Service must receive an advisory opinion from PRC when it seeks to implement reforms that would affect service on a nationwide basis. The opinion does not carry the force of law, however, and even if it had ruled firmly against the plan the agency could have moved forward anyway.
PRC’s non-binding recommendations called on postal management to set more realistic performance targets, suggesting its promise to deliver 95% of mail on time was, at least initially, unattainable.
It called on USPS to come up with new data to support its projections and said the agency should ensure the plan does not emphasize cost savings over adequate service. The commission implored postal management to monitor customer satisfaction to gauge the reaction as the plan is implemented.
"We are reviewing the recommendations of the Postal Regulatory Commission, and will consider them as we move forward with our plan," said Kim Frum, a USPS spokeswoman.
House Democrats originally sought to stymie DeJoy’s efforts to implement the mail slowdowns in postal reform legislation they introduced earlier this year, but ultimately stripped that language from the measure to win bipartisan backing. The bill now has widespread support in both the House and Senate, but is still awaiting a vote in both chambers.
DeJoy’s plan also called for raising prices in line with the authority PRC granted him in November. The new prices, which are set to go into effect Aug. 29, would raise rates for regular, First-Class mail by 6.8% and by 8.8% for package services. A standard stamp will go from $0.55 to $0.58. DeJoy previously promised to use his authority to raise rates above inflation "judiciously," but predicted USPS would generate between $35 billion and $52 billion over the next 10 years by raising prices.
Large-scale mail users pushed back on the increases before the PRC, noting it would hurt their organizations and drive users out of the mailing system. The commission disagreed, predicting only positive effects.
“It is the commission’s expectation that price increases like the ones proposed in this proceeding will enhance the Postal Service’s ability to make investments that increase efficiency and reduce costs, while also narrowing the formidable gap between costs and revenues, thus motivating the Postal Service to take further steps to reduce costs and increase efficiency,” it wrote.
Ultimately, as it had already granted the authority, PRC’s review amounted to simply checking USPS’ math to ensure its proposals stayed within the parameters of its rate-setting authority. A collection of industry groups is suing the commission over the rate-setting authority, arguing the new price caps do not adhere to federal law. That litigation is
ongoing, which PRC highlighted in response to comments it received asking it not to approve the Postal Service’s new prices.
The “appropriate forum” to resolve the scope of the commission’s legal authority, PRC said, “is the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in the currently pending appeal and not this proceeding.” The plaintiffs in that group had sought a stay to block the implementation of the new rates, but the court denied it.
Source : https://www.govexec.com/management/2021/07
5. Pathway to Change progress across Royal Mail’s smaller business units
July 19, 2021
Shorter working week ‘trigger’ agreements reached for members working in Admin, Stamps & Collectibles, Downstream Access and National Returns Centre, reports CWU assistant secretary Andy Furey…
“Following on from the May and June agreements reached in Customer Experience and MDECs, July has seen further steps forward for our members in some of the company’s smaller Admin functions,” says Andy.
“Taking the hour off the week on a pro-rata daily basis has been agreed as the best way forward, with workers at the Stamps & Collectibles (S&C) unit in Edinburgh and the Downstream Access (DSACC) workforce in Whitechapel, East London benefitting from a 12-minute reduction each of their five duty days, while our National Returns Centre (NRC) members over in Belfast will receive the hour off via four 15-minute reductions.”
DSACC members began working the new system last Monday, while S&C workers start the shorter week from next Monday – and at NRC, the change comes in today.
The agreement for our Admin members (LA grades) attached to mail centres and delivery offices is that their reduced working week will be introduced in accordance with the CWU uniform grades within whichever operational unit they are attached to.
“It’s great to see members receiving the benefit of this important part of the national Pathway to Change agreement,” says Andy.
“In return for the hour off, in each instance we’ve engaged with management to introduce change and in some cases, necessary structural change too and there’s been a lot of effort put in by our representatives, from local and area reps to postal executive members to ensure that the changes made are in the best interests of our members – while also making sure we take the opportunity to improve the service we provide to the overall Royal Mail Group operation and to the public.
“We’ve still got a lot of work to do but crucially we have now got shorter working week agreements across all Admin units which represents a significant step forward and my thanks to all reps and members for their assistance and hard work.”
POSTAL NEWS
No 58-2021
|
Formulated by UNI Apro Post and Logistics Sector 1. Jean-Gilles Henaut appointed director of Chronopost’s Shop2Shop division. July 23, 2021. 2. State financial aid to compensate for the Universal Postal Service. July 23, 2021. 3. Affordable postage. July 22, 2021. 4. Canada Post is testing tricycles to deliver some Montreal mail. July 20, 2021. 5. Austrian Post’s preliminary figures H1 2021: forecast for 2021 raised after good half-year performance. July 19, 2021.
Even after adjusting for differences in labor costs and purchasing power, only in the four far smaller European countries of Cyprus, Malta, Slovenia and Switzerland the postage is still below the German letter price. In addition to the price of a standard letter, sending cross-border mail to another country in Europe has also become more expensive when compared with prices last year. 16 countries have increased their rates for letters within Europe, raising the average price to €1.73. In Germany, letter mail within Europe costs €1.10, also placing this postage rate well below the average. In only five of the countries surveyed the price for letter mail within Europe is cheaper than in Germany. As every year, the current study on European letter prices adjusts the postage for inflation over the last ten years. From this perspective, since 2011 letter mail has become 79.11% more expensive in the countries covered in the survey. In comparison, the German letter price rose by only 29.4 per cent in the same period, taking inflation into account. This puts the price for a standard letter in Germany in 21st place, ranking it in Europe's lower field. With an inflation-adjusted price increase of more than 300% in the last 10 years, Italy takes the lead. In its 20th edition, the Deutsche Post letter mail price survey also uses the example of an industrial worker to show the number of minutes that need to be worked in each country to be able to pay for a standard letter postage. This gives an iThis gives an insight into how affordable the postage rate actually is. Germany has the cheapest letter mail price after Switzerland and Malta, the latter being the most affordable - a worker only has to work 1.44 minutes to earn enough to buy a stamp. With the European average at 4.24 minutes, at 9.76 minutes Estonia has the least affordable rate. Source : https://www.dpdhl.com/en/media-relations/press-releases/2021 4. Canada Post is testing tricycles to deliver some Montreal mail July 20, 2021 If you're in downtown
Montreal and spot a giant Canada Post tricycle delivering mail, you're not
dreaming. • Mail Division: +3.0% to EUR 608m • Parcel & Logistics Division: +70.7% to EUR 628m (+27.0% excl. Aras Kargo) Earnings expectation (EBIT) H1 2021 of EUR 103m (EUR 44m in Q2) Earnings forecast (EBIT) 2021: targeted improvement of at least 20% vs. previous year Following the dramatic social disruptions and economic downturn triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in the second quarter of 2020, the first six months of 2021 showed a recovery of the business activities of many customer groups. Nevertheless, the business development of Austrian Post will continue to be impacted by various restrictions in the current financial year. A tough five-week first-quarter lockdown was followed by a gradual opening of different areas of public and social life starting in the second quarter of the year. Following pandemic-related additional revenue in the first quarter, the second quarter of 2021 showed a certain normalisation. In the parcel segment, weaker growth was recorded following high increases in the prior-year quarter. The decline in mail volumes continued, now at a lower level following an increased reduction in the previous year. According to the preliminary figures, Group revenue of Austrian Post climbed by 28.4% in the first six months of 2021 to EUR 1,260m. The Turkish subsidiary Aras Kargo, fully consolidated since 25 August 2020, also contributed about EUR 160m to revenue growth in this period. Excluding Aras Kargo, the increase in revenue equalled 12.0%. The Mail Division accounted for EUR 608m (+3.0%) of total Austrian Post revenue, whereas the Parcel & Logistics Division generated revenue of EUR 628m (+70.7% Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) in the first half of 2021 are expected to equal EUR 103m. This performance represents a doubling of the first half-year 2020 results, which suffered from massive negative COVID-19-related effects. The company aims at achieving an earnings improvement in the current financial year of at least 20% compared to the prior-year level (basis 2020 EBIT: EUR 161m). Comprehensive disclosure for the first half of 2021 will be published on 12 August 2021. Source :
https://news.post.at/presse/en/post/id/1703801 |
S