UNI Apro Post & Logistics
1 POSTAL NEWS No 19-2022
Formulated by UNI Apro Post and Logistics Sector
1.Hermes UK rebrands as Evri and launches pension first. March 11, 2022.
2.Royal Mail customers given access to images capturing proof of delivery. March 10, 2022.
3.Cirillo: Swiss Post wants to do justice to the important role it plays in the Swiss economy. March 10, 2022.
4.Ukraine’s Postal Service: Heroically delivering aid incountry and carrying on. March 09, 2022.
5.Post Office members – VOTE YES and join us on the zoom rally at 7.30pm! March 08, 2022.
1.Hermes UK rebrands as Evri and launches pension first March 11, 2022
Hermes UK is rebranding as Evri, with a new logo and brand identity being rolled out across all its locations, vehicles and ParcelShops.
The brand will be launched through the company’s first TV advertising campaign which debuts at 8.15pm on Friday 18th March, during the Coronation Street centre advert break. The new brand will see a significant investment in customer service, including the opening of a fully UK-based customer service team and the addition of 200 experts who will be based in local depots, closer to where potential issues are. The company will also upgrade its chatbot and release more phone lines for customers who prefer to speak directly to someone.
Martijn de Lange, CEO at Evri (formerly Hermes UK) said: “This rebrand follows significant investment and two years of dramatic growth which has resulted in our entire business going through a major transformation programme. It is more than just a name change – it is a statement of intent of our commitment to leading the way in creating responsible delivery experiences for ‘Evri one’, ‘Evri where’.” As well as the rebrand Evri has also announced that it is to auto-enrol its self-employed plus (SE+) couriers who make up 85% of the network, into a pension by the end of this year. It says that the move is a UK logistics industry first and represents a £7 million plus investment each year in the earnings security of its SE+ couriers. Following discussions with the GMB Union, ‘Evri’ will also be introducing the right to maternity/paternity leave for all SE+ couriers with effect from March 2022. Stephen Timms MP, chair of the House of Commons Work and Pensions Select Committee said: “This is a huge step in the right direction and will help thousands of couriers plan for retirement.”
Source : https://edelivery.net/2022/03/hermes-uk-rebrands-evri-launches-pension-first/
2.Royal Mail customers given access to images capturing proof of delivery March 10, 2022 Royal Mail is rolling out a new feature where photos taken as confirmation of delivery can be viewed by customers using the company’s ‘Tracked’ services.
The feature will provide customers both sending and receiving packages with increased visibility of how and where items are delivered. The Royal Mail app and website will show the photo taken by delivery personnel of the item when customers input their tracking details. Customers can also access the photo via email notifications from Royal Mail. Photos will also be made available where items are delivered to a neighbor. The launch of the new feature follows the rollout of new state-of-the-art handheld devices announced in September 2021. The new devices, which were selected following an extensive trial across the UK, have enhanced scanning and photo capabilities to support the new feature.
Nick Landon, chief commercial officer at Royal Mail, said, “The photo capture feature is another example of how Royal Mail is innovating to increase convenience for customers, while continuing to deliver trust at the doorstep. We are always looking for new ways to ensure we provide the best service possible to all of our customers.”
Source:https://www.parcelandpostaltechnologyinternational.com/news/technology/royalmail-customers-given-access-to-images-capturing-proof-of-delivery.html
3.Cirillo: Swiss Post wants to do justice to the important role it plays in the Swiss economy March 10, 2022
Swiss Post has recovered faster than expected from the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic. In 2021, it generated Group profit of 457 million francs, up 279 million francs year-on-year.
To ensure that Swiss Post can hold its ground in free competition and in the digital world and continue guaranteeing the universal service without relying on taxpayers’ money, it is making consistent and focused investments. This is because the pressure on the letter and financial business remains unabated. Swiss Post wants to develop its core business such that it can continue meeting the needs of people and businesses in Switzerland. In both the physical and digital worlds. Swiss Post met with success as it embarked on this path in 2021, the first year of the new strategy period. In 2021, Swiss Post coped with the challenges of the pandemic successfully and dependably, whether it be the enormous parcel volumes in day-to-day operations, serving at the Swiss Post branches or working behind the wheel of a Postbus. Swiss Post’s financial result for the year is also positive: at 515 million francs, operating profit (EBIT) is up 257 million francs yearon-year. Group profit for 2021 totals 457 million francs, up 279 million francs over 2020, the first year of the pandemic. Because of the extremely negative impact of the pandemic in 2020, there is more to be gained from a comparison with the year 2019 (in other words, before the pandemic): operating profit in 2021 is up 65 million over the figure for 2019. Swiss Post CEO Roberto Cirillo sums up the situation as follows: “I’m very pleased with the first year of the new strategy period. We have successfully consolidated our logistics for parcels and letters. We have developed and acquired important digital skills for SMEs, public authorities and the healthcare sector. We have kept our promise to stabilize the number of our self-operated branches at around 800. And we were named the world’s best postal service for the fifth time. Our very good financial result offers further reassurance that we are on the right track.
Financial impact of the pandemic absorbed quickly
Swiss Post proved able to cushion the financial impact of the pandemic in 2021. This quick recovery was possible thanks to its flexibility and positive developments in various business units: at 18 million francs in 2021, the result generated by the Mobility Services unit (PostBus / Post Company Cars) is 81 million francs higher year-on-year. The main reason for the increase is that the Confederation and cantons will compensate PostBus for its revenue losses in regional transport resulting from the coronavirus pandemic. In addition, rail replacement services also improved the PostBus result. In 2021, PostalNetwork also increased its operating result by 33 million francs compared to the previous year (EBIT 2021: −68 million francs). The decline in traditional over-the-counter transactions at Swiss Post branches continued last year. However, thanks to targeted modifications to the branch network and consistent efficiency improvements, the PostalNetwork unit more than offset these further losses in over-the-counter transactions in 2021. Head of Finance Alex Glanzmann explains: “Swiss Post has recovered faster than expected from the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic. However, the pressure on Swiss Post’s core business has not gone anywhere. We must continue to make targeted investments in the things that Switzerland’s people and businesses need, both now and in the future.”
Positive impact of banking packages and digital investment solutions at PostFinance.
PostFinance achieved an operating profit of 272 million francs, up 110 million francs year-onyear. Last year, PostFinance introduced the new PostFinance App, launched the digital banking app Yuh in conjunction with Swissquote and, as in previous years, reinforced its investment business with new digital investment solutions. Thanks to this strategic approach and the banking packages introduced in 2021, PostFinance achieved an improvement in its result from commission business and services. The trend in trading portfolio assets was also positive. Interest income on financial assets continued to decline due to market conditions. This decline was not fully offset by PostFinance, despite increased activity in the interbank market and higher customer asset fees.
More parcels require more investment
In the logistics business, Swiss Post achieved a stable result of 465 million francs last year (−5 million francs compared to 2020). Due to booming online retail and the lockdown at the beginning of 2021, parcel volumes again rose by almost 10 percent. Thanks to a combination of this trend and company acquisitions across the range of its core business, the Logistics Services unit increased its revenue by 127 million francs last year. However, rising parcel volumes also lead to significantly higher costs in the Human Resources and Transport units. And they require Swiss Post to invest heavily in its infrastructure, increasing operating expenses in the logistics segment by 132 million francs year-on-year. The volume of letters again declined by more than three percent last year. However, thanks to growth in the parcels segment, acquisitions and consistent cost management, Swiss Post almost offset the further decline in earnings from letters last year.
Important investments also in secure digital solutions for customers
In 2021, the operating result for the newly created Communication Services unit stood at –80 million francs. Swiss Post has been building up this unit since the beginning of last year with a view to providing SMEs, public authorities, the healthcare sector and not least the people of Switzerland with digital postal services in the future.
These services will be simple and secure and will offer an alternative to services from foreign corporations and companies with a purely commercial focus. This requires the development of new digital skills, which Swiss Post is also securing through the acquisition of selected specialized companies − for example, in cloud security, electronic identification, SME digitization and software for municipalities. These investments led to a negative financial result at the Communication Services unit in 2021 and will also do so in the coming years, a scenario in line with expectations. Head of Finance Alex Glanzmann explains: “This unit’s result is expected to improve continuously in the coming years. At the end of the strategy period, we aim to be generating profit through digital communication services.
Pressure on the core business remains unabated
Despite the positive annual result, the challenges in Swiss Post’s core business remain unchanged: the negative interest rate environment at PostFinance, declining numbers of overthe-counter transactions and a further decline in letter volumes coinciding with a rise in parcel volumes. As in previous years, the rising parcel volumes alone cannot compensate for the decline in profit due to falling letter volumes. In addition, processing and delivery of the enormous parcel volumes pose a major challenge for staff, and hence for Swiss Post as a whole. Investments of around 1.5 billion francs in infrastructure are envisaged in the logistics segment by 2030. In order to survive in the market, Swiss Post must also achieve targeted growth in its core business and become digitized. Roberto Cirillo stresses: “The debate about Swiss Post and competition is not always based on the facts. For years, Swiss Post has been generating well over 80 percent of its income in open and fierce competition with other companies. However, Swiss Post also wants to do justice to the important role it plays in the Swiss economy, especially for SMEs. That’s why we want to invest – including in digital skills. This is in line with the requirements of people and businesses in Switzerland. In the long term, it is the only way we can guarantee the Swiss public service throughout all parts of the country without relying on taxpayers’ money.”
“The smart Swiss model must not be jeopardized by extreme changes”
In 2021 – in the middle of the difficult times of the pandemic – Swiss Post embarked on a new, four-year strategy period. Swiss Post has already succeeded in reaching the first milestones in the new strategy: it has made major organizational adjustments, in particular with the merger of the letter and parcel units. Swiss Post has also stabilized its network of branches at around 800 and opened it up to the first third-party providers. And it has continued developing and strengthening its digital services. Christian Levrat, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Swiss Post since December 2021, stresses: “The Swiss economy needs outstanding infrastructure if it is to continue on its path of global success. Swiss Post will facilitate this by becoming more digital and by continuing to improve integration into international online retail. The strategy we are pursuing is the right way to achieve this. And for me, it was a significant reason why I was confident in accepting the role as Chairman of the Board of Directors.” The Chairman of the Board of Directors is also pleased that in this first year of the new strategy period, Swiss Post proved able to improve its financial result significantly and is therefore now on more solid ground than before the pandemic. “Swiss Post is the foundation for the public service of the future. “The smart Swiss model of a highquality, customer-focused, modern and publicly owned infrastructure that is still self-financed must not be compromised by extreme changes. On the contrary, the prudent course is to continue developing it.”
Source : https://postandparcel.info/147148/news/e-commerce/cirillo-swiss-post-wants-to-dojustice-to-the-important-role-it-plays-in-the-swiss-economy/
4.Ukraine’s Postal Service: Heroically delivering aid in-country and carrying on March 09, 2022 Ukraine’s Postal Service, Ukrposhta, has launched a historic program to bring large amounts of humanitarian aid into the country. It is inspiring, essential, and dangerous work. And Ukrposhta is also valiantly continuing its daily postal operations as best it can.
On March 4, Ukrposhta announced it is resuming flights to the United States to deliver commercial items to American customers from small- and medium-sized Ukrainian businesses. These are e-commerce companies selling goods on eBay, Amazon, Etsy, and other websites. The flights leave from Warsaw and arrive at Kennedy Airport. Return flights will have up to 40 tons of humanitarian aid, especially food and medical supplies. In the United States, DNIPRO LLC in Roselle, New Jersey is collecting goods for shipment to Ukraine. They worked all weekend to get the first 40-ton shipment ready to be flown to Warsaw on Wednesday, March 9, before it goes to Ukraine. Lexington Institute’s Paul Steidler corresponded with Julia Pavlenko, Director, Department of International Operation for Ukrposhta. The discussion, and information on how to help this important cause, is below.
STEIDLER: What percent of the humanitarian aid that you are flying to Warsaw do you expect will be brought into Ukraine and go to those who are in dire need?
PAVLENKO: Ukrposhta’s main goal is to deliver humanitarian aid (mainly medical supplies and equipment and food) to Ukraine itself, to the affected hospitals, military units, schools etc. Ukrposhta will collect the goods from the airport by its own trucks along the green corridor through the border, then sort them. Working in close cooperation with local administrations in Ukraine, Ukrposhta will know where which goods are most needed. Ukrposhta is planning five or more trips (Ukrposhta is bringing export mail to Poland at its own expense and is looking for financing of the return trip to bring humanitarian aid to Ukraine)
STEIDLER: What supplies are especially important to get?
PAVLENKO: The most needed goods are food, clothes, hygiene products, (and) medicines.
STEIDLER: As a postal service, what are some of the advantages that you have over other organizations in distributing aid? Can anyone distribute aid as well as Ukrposhta can within Ukraine?
PAVLENKO: Ukrposhta is the designated postal operator of Ukraine with 65,000 employees and 11,000 post offices across the country. Although now we have difficulty accessing some regions (Luhansk region, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kramatorsk, Kherson, Mykolayiv). Ukrposhta’s employees are doing their best to perform their duties even in the dangerous circumstances. And as soon as the aggressor’s army stops firing (at) civilians, Ukrposhta will restore regional routes with sorting centers in these regions because it is very important to access all customers. Ukrposhta continues its work to provide services whenever possible and its employees are working in extremely dangerous conditions. Three (of) Ukrposhta’s employees have been killed while performing their duties (two of them were trying to deliver pensions to people in Zaporizhzhia region in a branded Ukrposhta “mobile post office” van, which was attacked by the occupant troops). Therefore, Ukrposhta is one of the best partners to deliver humanitarian aid.
A lot of partners have already launched free delivery to Ukraine (Gibraltar, Georgia, Slovenia). Several partners are also collecting humanitarian aid for Ukraine at special warehouses, from which parcels will be delivered by Ukrposhta: Greece (two warehouses), Poland, USA. Several postal operators introduce special charity activities and send tonnes of aid to Ukraine (Georgian Post, Romanian Post).
STEIDLER: You have certainly faced enormous challenges with the war. How well has Ukrposhta been able to provide regular services and operate on a day-to-day basis?
PAVLENKO: As (of) now Ukrposhta has difficulty accessing some regions (Luhansk region, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kramatorsk, Kherson, Mykolayiv), the network is operating (except Luhansk region), but on a local level. Unfortunately, these regions have no regular connection to Kyiv, so Ukrposhta cannot guarantee timely delivery. In the rest of the country Ukrposhta is operating in the normal format, with linehaul routes (every day or every two days) connecting them to Lviv OE, so all import mail received from Poland or Slovakia is processed in Lviv or Chop and then delivered by linehaul routes to destinations in Ukraine. But connection between Kyiv and Lviv can be about 48 hours due to check points and heavy traffic (many people are trying to go to the western part of Ukraine + several roads are broken).
Some of the 40 tons of humanitarian aid being shipped to Ukraine that will be distributed by Ukrposhta. Source: DNIPRO LLC.
Despite the complicated conditions, Ukrposhta has sent about 46 tonnes of outgoing mail (60% of which is on its way to Poland). On 8 March, a charter flight (Airbus 330 by WindRose Airlines) is scheduled to fly from Warsaw airport to New York JFK airport.
On the way back Ukrposhta trucks will receive import mail at the office of exchange of Poczta Polska, and Ukrposhta will perform customs procedures and deliver the mail within its network. As about 1.5 million people have fled Ukraine to foreign countries and about three to four million are now moving to western parts of the country: Ukrposhta has introduced the possibility to re-address (re-direct) postal items within Ukraine (customers can contact Ukrposhta’s call centre or Ukrposhta’s social media). In addition, postal items are stored at post offices for free until the end of the martial law in Ukraine. Ukrposhta is introducing all necessary steps and doing its best to deliver postal items and money payments to the people in Ukraine in a safe way.
STEIDLER: What if a U.S. company or high-net worth individual wants to provide a cargo plane to you, could that be used to transport more goods back?
PAVLENKO: This would be very helpful (as mentioned above, Ukrposhta is bringing export mail to Poland at its own expense and is looking for financing of the return trip to bring humanitarian aid to Ukraine).
STEIDLER: What do you want people to know about what is going on in Ukraine now?
PAVLENKO: The Russian troops are attacking Ukraine in a cruel and unacceptable way, launching missile strikes on Ukrainian settlements, killing civilians with all kinds of heavy weapons, destroying the infrastructure of cities and villages, residential buildings, damaging critical facilities, which can lead to terrible environmental disasters. The Russian troops have destroyed 211 schools, 38 hospitals have been destroyed or are under constant attacks, there have been 350 casualties among civilians, including 24 children, and 707 have been injured.
Source : https://www.lexingtoninstitute.org/ukraines-postal-service-heroically-delivering-aidin-country-and-carrying-on/
5.Post Office members – VOTE YES and join us on the zoom rally at 7.30pm!
March 08, 2022 Around 1,400 CWU members working for the Post Office will start voting tomorrow morning on strike action against the pay freeze. The union is calling for the biggest possible YES vote and asking members to attend this evening’s ‘virtual’ meeting.
“It’s so important that we get a massive YES and also a massive turnout,” said CWU assistant secretary Andy Furey, as he prepared for the 7.30pm online rally. With inflation high and rising, we’ve got to smash the freeze. “Our key worker members have worked exceptionally hard over these past couple of years, continuing to serve the Great British public though the worst public health crisis in living memory and keeping Post Offices open while banks and others shut down. “It’s an absolute disgrace that bosses have imposed a pay freeze at such a time – and there’s not even an economic rationale to the freeze, with the Post Office in healthy profit thanks to the hard work, dedication and devotion to duty of our front line members.
Starting at 7.30pm this evening, Andy will be speaking direct to Post Office members around the UK, explaining once again the important issues at stake and the reasons why the CWU has moved towards a national strike ballot. CWU head of communications Chris Webb will be hosting this evening’s event and he tells CWU News: “we’ve already had good numbers of people registering to take part and there’s no doubting the strength of feeling out there – it’s anger at this pay freeze. “If you haven’t yet registered, then please do so using this link and please join us tonight – let’s all get 100 per cent behind Andy and all stand together in this fight for a fair deal.” Andy is also looking forward to this evening, saying: “It’s a great opportunity for members to hear the very latest information and also to hear form others around the country and realise that everyone is angry – let’s be angry together. Let’s all stand together. Let’s all fight together. “And most important of all right now – watch out on your doorstep for that ballot paper. And when it comes, VOTE YES!”
Source : https://www.cwu.org/news/post-office-members-vote-yes-and-join-us-on-the-zoomrally-at-7-30pm
UNI Apro Post & Logistics
1 POSTAL NEWS No 20-2022
Formulated by UNI Apro Post and Logistics Sector
1.Austrian Post will continue to invest both in growth and in the decarbonisation of logistics in 2022. March 11, 2022.
2.UPU celebrates International Women’s Day with dedicated gender equality event. March 10, 2022.
3.Statement of NALC President Fredric Rolando on Senate passage of postal reform. March 09, 2022.
4.Poste Italiane receives 45 electric vehicles at Cuneo distribution centre. March 08, 2022.
5.Nippon Express USA acquires GDP certification for CFS in New York. March 08, 2022.
1.Austrian Post will continue to invest both in growth and in the decarbonisation of logistics in 2022 March 11, 2022
Austrian Post has announced positive financial results for 2021 but expressed a cautious outlook for 2022 due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and change in consumer behaviour in a number of markets.
Parcel volume growth, Letter and Direct Mail decline
▪ Parcel volumes in Austria +11 %, Turkey +5 %, CEE/SEE +16 % in 2021
▪ Letter mail volumes -4 %, direct mail items –1 % in 2021
2021 revenue increase of 14.9 % to EUR 2,519.6m (+5.7 % organic)
Mail +0.1 % to EUR 1,224.2m ▪ Parcel & Logistics +36.4 % to EUR 1,245.7m (+14.2 % organic) ▪ Retail & Bank +10.8 % to EUR 74.7m
Earnings ▪ EBITDA +22.3 % to EUR 370.4m ▪ EBIT +27.5 % to EUR 204.7m ▪ Mail: -5.6 % to EUR 155.2m ▪ Parcel & Logistics: +60.6 % to EUR 118.1m ▪ Retail & Bank: +10.4 % to minus EUR 39.2m ▪ Earnings per share +28.7 % to EUR 2.25 Cash flow and balance sheet ▪ Operating free cash flow of EUR 217.9m ▪ Balance sheet total now at EUR 4.8bn (+78.8 %) due to bank99 Outlook for 2022 ▪ Difficult outlook in a challenging market environment (acts of war in the Ukraine fuels inflation and subdued consumer behaviour in many markets) ▪ Start 2022: First half-year with economic headwinds ▪ Aiming for as stable as possible in revenue and earnings as close as possible to 2021 level “The year 2021 was very successful for Austrian Post.
The business environment in the national and international mail and parcel business consistently improved following a difficult pandemic-driven 2020. “We managed to ensure the safety of our staff and safeguard our logistics performance as well as increased the profitability of our company”, says CEO Georg Pölzl. Group revenue rose by 14.9 % in 2021, of which 5.7 % is attributable to organic growth and the remainder to the full consolidation of the Turkish subsidiary Aras Kargo. Following strong pandemic-driven momentum in the parcel business during the first three quarters there was a consolidation in the fourth quarter. Fourth quarter 2021 parcel revenue was up by 0.9 % from the previous period. The basic trends impacting current business activities were also visible in 2021 i.e., declining letter mail and direct mail volumes accompanied by a simultaneous increase in parcel volumes also triggered by lockdown-related closures of retail stores. The Group’s divisional revenue distribution has changed significantly in 2021: The Parcel & Logistics Division generated the largest share of the Group’s revenue at 49.0 % followed by 48.1 % generated by the Mail Division and 2.9 % by the Retail & Bank Division. Revenue of the Parcel & Logistics Division climbed by 36.4 % to EUR 1,245.7m, implying organic growth of 14.2 %. This development can be mainly attributed to the Turkish subsidiary Aras Karo as well as to strong business in Austria and in Southeast and Eastern Europe. The Mail Division generated revenue of EUR 1,224.2m (+0.1 %) and was impacted by declining letter mail volumes and an ongoing difficult market environment for direct mail and media post due to various lockdown measures imposed on the retail market. Revenue of the Retail & Bank
Division improved by 10.8 % to EUR 74.7m in the 2021 financial year. In addition to the positive development of its customer ramp-up efforts, the subsidiary bank99 also acquired the retail business of ING in Austria at the end of 2021, thus enabling it to extend its existing offering by adding its own loan and investment products. Earnings also reflected the improved revenue situation. EBITDA increased to EUR 370.4m (+22.3 %) and earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) rose by 27.5 % to EUR 204.7m. The Mail Division reported an EBIT decline of 5.6 % to EUR 155.2m. In contrast, EBIT of the Parcel & Logistics Division increased from EUR 73.5m to EUR 118.1m (+60.6 %) and the Retail & Bank Division improved its earnings performance to minus EUR 39.2m compared to minus EUR 43.8m in the previous year. Austrian Post’s profit for the period amounted to EUR 158.4m compared to the prior-year level of EUR 115.3m. Earnings per share in the 2021 financial year equalled EUR 2.25. Based on good results, an attractive dividend of EUR 1.90 per share will once again be proposed to the Annual General Meeting scheduled for 21 April 2022. From today’s perspective, a challenging environment is anticipated in the 2022 financial year as well as the non-recurrence of positive pandemic-related one-off effects. Delays in the global value chain and rising inflation already took place in 2021 alongside pressure on the Turkish lira. The current political events pose major challenges to the European population and companies. “We are deeply saddened by the war taking place in Ukraine. Human suffering dwarfs all the other effects,” says Austrian Post CEO Georg Pölzl. The direct impacts on the business model of Austrian Post in terms of mail and parcel flows from the countries involved are relatively minor. However, indirect effects are, in fact, expected. Inflation based on price increases for energy and raw materials will intensify and could thus have adverse effects on consumer behaviour in the future. Furthermore, negative effects are also expected with respect to the Austrian Post subsidiary bank99 as a result of payments to be made within the context of bank deposit insurance in Austria. Due to market headwinds it is not expected that earnings in the first half of 2021, which were supported by positive special effects, will be achieved over the same period in 2022. In spite of this looming negative market environment, Austrian Post aims to keep revenues as stable as possible and operating earnings (EBIT) once again close to the prior-year level. Continuity with regards to the expansion programme for logistics capacities is also a priority. Austrian Post will continue to invest both in growth and in the decarbonisation of logistics in 2022. The target is to strengthen Austrian Post’s top position with respect to quality and speed as well as to safeguard its pioneering role in the decarbonisation of logistics.
“Our more than 27,000 employees are the foundation for our success. They work for the benefit of our customers with high commitments on a daily basis. Many thanks to them for this. Together we will succeed in continuing to be the preferred partner of our customers”, CEO Georg Pölzl concludes. Source : https://postandparcel.info/147176/news/e-commerce/austrian-post-will-continue-toinvest-both-in-growth-and-in-the-decarbonisation-of-logistics-in-2022/
2.UPU celebrates International Women’s Day with dedicated gender equality event March 10, 2022 The UPU has celebrated International Women’s Day (March 8) by hosting a dedicated gender equality event, which brought together leading female figures from the postal sector to discuss the importance of parity in the workforce and how it can lead to a more sustainable future.
The virtual event, which was moderated by UPU Voice Mail podcast host, Ian Kerr, highlighted why gender equality is important in the Post, how posts can play a role in spreading the gender parity message beyond their own operations, what can be done to advance women’s representation in management positions, and how the UPU is advocating diversity in the postal workforce worldwide. The line-up included Susan Alexander, Postal Regulation and UN Policies Programme Manager at the UPU; Kristin Bergum, Senior Vice President, International and Regulatory Affairs at Posten Norge (Norway); Jennifer Beiro-Réveillé, Senior Director, Environmental Affairs and Corporate Sustainability at the United States Postal Service (USPS), and Pierangela Sierra, Co-Founder and CEO of Latin American grocery e-commerce platform, Tipti, and UNCTAD eTrade for Women Advocate for Latin America (Ecuador). The UPU’s Alexander highlighted a new resolution which was adopted at the 27th Universal Postal Congress in Abidjan on gender equality and the empowerment of women, which gives the UPU a mandate to promote work towards Sustainable Development Goal 5 on gender equality during the next four years. “As a first step we plan to undertake a survey to find out where the Post is in terms of women’s representation,” she said during the event. “As part of this, posts will be able to benchmark themselves to see how they are doing. We will also be developing an international gender policy for the Post, which includes active promotion of gender mainstreaming in the postal sector.” Alexander also highlighted the important role the Post can play in promoting gender equality through its extensive networks and reach. “Posts can use their networks to promote things like the education of women and girls and distribute campaigns to end discrimination,” she added.
Meanwhile, Posten Norge’s Bergum spoke about how sustainable development can only successfully be achieved by hiring the best workforce, which includes equal representation of men and women. Posten Norge’s management board currently features 60% women and its executive board 40% women. “To be excellent in the field of sustainable development we need to recruit from 100% of the talent pool, not just from 50% of it,” she explained. “Therefore, we need to employ the most talented men and women and create attractive working environments for both.” The USPS also has a good representation of women and minority groups in its workforce. According to figures shown by Beiro-Réveillé during the event, 49% of USPS’s workforce are minorities and 46% are women. Meanwhile, 35% of senior management are minorities and 36% women. “We are very proud of our continuing efforts and progress in diversity and inclusion,” she says. “Our focus is to ensure that we represent the communities that we serve, otherwise we are not relevant.
In her role as UNCTAD eTrade for Women Advocate for Latin America, Pierangela Sierra of Tipti, is encouraging women to challenge gender stereotypes and drive female communities in e-commerce. “We are working very hard to try to drive more women in the STEM area, in particular, because we are so few currently,” she explained. “In my opinion, equality is not a gender issue, it is a business one. Gender equality in Latin America, for example, and in some other parts of the world, seems far behind what we really need in our business and this matters because gender equality improves economic growth and raises social and environmental sustainability.”
Source : https://www.upu.int/en/News/2022/3/UPU-celebrates-InternationalWomen%E2%80%99s-Day-with-dedicated-gender-equality-event
3.Statement of NALC President Fredric Rolando on Senate passage of postal reform March 09, 2022 “America’s letter carriers applaud the 79 members of the U.S. Senate who voted to pass the Postal Reform Act last night, following its adoption by the House of Representatives with a massive bipartisan majority in February.
We express our deep gratitude to Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI) and Rob Portman (R-OH), the chair and ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, for marshalling a huge bipartisan majority for the reform bill and for working with Democrats and Republicans in the House to craft the legislation. H.R. 3076 was a sensible set of reforms that all four corners of Congress could enthusiastically support. The successful adoption of the bill reflects years of steady work by NALC members and staff to build consensus among postal stakeholders and members of Congress – as well as the overwhelming support of the American people who have long embraced the Postal Service as a national treasure. We thank our fellow postal unions, the mailing industry and postal management for working together on this effort. The resulting legislation, which repeals the unfair prefunding mandate for retiree health benefits put in place in 2006 and secures the continuation of six-day delivery, puts the USPS in a position to grow and adapt to meet the evolving needs of America’s households and businesses.
Looking ahead, we will continue our efforts to ensure that postal management properly staffs the city carrier craft so that we may once again provide the highest quality of service to our customers throughout the country. And we also look forward to working with the Biden Administration to pursue further administrative and legislative reforms to achieve fair and effective postal pension policies that will further strengthen the agency. The bill passed last night – with President Biden’s anticipated signature – is a giant step forward in the NALC’s ongoing efforts to secure a brilliant future for one of America’s oldest and most essential institutions.”
Source : https://www.nalc.org/news/nalc-updates/statement-of-nalc-president-fredric-rolandoon-senate-passage-of-postal-reform
4.Poste Italiane receives 45 electric vehicles at Cuneo distribution centre March 08, 2022 Poste Italiane has announced that 45 electric vehicles were delivered to the De Gasperi Distribution Centre in Cuneo province.
The delivery consisted of five electric vans with a power of 44 kw, a range of 200 km, a maximum speed of 140 km/h and a load volume of 3.1 cu m. The company has also received 40 electric cars each with 52 kw of power, a range of 350 km, a maximum speed of 140 km/h and a load volume of one cu m. In addition, 45 electric columns to recharge vehicles with a power of 7.4 kW were installed. Moving forward, all deliveries in Cuneo will be carried out exclusively by using these vehicles. They will also be used in many other parts of the province including Bernezzo, Borgo San Dalmazzo, Boves, Caraglio, Centallo, Cervasca, Chiusa Pesio and Vignolo. Poste Italiane said that the renewal of the company fleet is one of the objectives of its ’24 SI’’ strategy that will continue throughout 2022 and will see a total of 5,800 electric vehicles operating throughout Italy. This equals to around 20.0% of the company’s fleet, with the aim to make Poste Italiane’s operations more sustainable.
Source : https://www.ti-insight.com/poste-italiane-receives-45-electric-vehicles-at-cuneodistribution-centre
5.Nippon Express USA acquires GDP certification for CFS in New York March 08, 2022 Nippon Express USA, Inc. (Toshiya Abe, President; hereinafter, "NX USA"), a Group company of Nippon Express Holdings, Inc. (Mitsuru Saito, President), has obtained Good Distribution Practice (GDP) certification effective December 20, 2021 for forwarding operations, inclusive of temporary storage, at a temperature-controlled facility in its own CFS near John F. Kennedy International Airport (hereinafter, "JFK Airport") in New York City, evidencing its compliance with GDP standards for the proper distribution of pharmaceuticals.
The US Northeast is home to a large number of companies involved in the pharmaceutical and medical device businesses, and demand in those sectors is expected to rise in future. NX USA's New York Branch has its own warehouse near JFK Airport that is fully equipped with a temperature-controlled 24m2 facility dedicated to pharmaceutical products and capable of both refrigerated (2ºC-8ºC) and constant-temperature (15ºC-25ºC) storage, enabling the Branch to provide a safe and high-quality pharmaceutical distribution platform by operating regular shuttle trucking services that deliver cargo to other Nippon Express locations across the Northeast as early as the following morning. The NX Group will continue stepping up its initiatives in the pharmaceutical industry, identified as a priority industry in the Group's Business Plan, and globally enhancing and expanding its services to meet the increasingly sophisticated and diversified pharmaceutical transport needs of its customers.
Source : https://www.nipponexpress-holdings.com/en/press/2022/8-Mar-22-1.html