Deutsche Post has rejected union demands for shorter working times and a strike threat as “absurd”and warned that such a move would threaten jobs.
Ver.di, which represents most of the Deutsche Post employees in Germany, has startedpreparations for strike action in January over plans to lengthen the working week of 60,000 Germanpostal workers with civil servant status from 38.5 to 41 hours in January 2007.
At present, the civil servants and 130,000 postal employees all work 38.5 hours, but theregulation restricting the working hours of the civil servants is due to expire on December 31,2006. Deutsche Post plans to increase its civil servants’ working hours to the same level as civilservants in other sectors of the German economy.
Ver.di said that Deutsche Post had deliberately delayed negotiations over the changes whichit claimed threatened 5,000 jobs. At the same time, the union said it wanted to secure shorterworking times for staff with employee status in order to balance out the longer hours for civilservants.
But Deutsche Post responded that the strike threat was “absurd”. It stressed there was nothreat of job losses for postal employees, and it was reasonable to increase civil servants’working hours in view of their privileges.
DPWN board member for personnel, Walter Scheurle, said: “We are ready for talks but will notlet ourselves be put under time pressure. We offer Ver.di constructive talks in January to seek asolution.” The demand for shorter working hours for employees would not secure any jobs sincethe staff of postal competitors worked longer for less pay.
Meanwhile, the two sides have started talks over possible plans to restructure Deutsche Post’s under-performing domestic parcel business by merging parcel deliveries into the mail deliveryoperation. It was agreed not to disclose information about the contents of the discussions.
