Deutsche Post to introduce part time work schemes for postmen

Deutsche Post AG will introduce part-time work schemes for almost 6,000 of its postmen and will aim to deliver all the mail to the recipients until 1300 hours local time, the group said on November 24, 2006.
Deutsche Post has more than 79,000 postmen who will be affected by the restructuring and will have to cope with reduced payment and changed place of work.
Unlike the parcel delivery and the sorting centres, where there are part-time and “mini-jobs”, up to now all postmen were on full-time schedule. Deutsche Post will continue to avoid “mini-jobs” in the future as well.
[Editor’s note: Subsidised mini-jobs are low-paid jobs that earn as much as 400 euro (USD524) a month, and are partly exempt from tax and social security contributions, the German News Digest reported on November 3, 2004.]
The postmen will not be forced to accept part-time work but will have to switch to another location if their traditional location is hit by restructuring. Deutsche Post (www.deutschepost.de) will offer them alternative jobs.
The restructuring concept will be introduced from the beginning of 2007 to the end of 2009. One of the priorities is to ensure mail delivery until 1300 hours each day in a bid to boost quality of service and assist its private clients.
As much as 90 pct of the mail for corporate clients and 80 pct of the mail for private clients is delivered by 1300 hours.
The DPVKOM industry union does not support the restructuring considering that long-term guarantees on the full-time jobs are possible. The restructuring will worsen Deutsche Post’s contact to clients and will pose great disadvantage when monopoly is revoked, DPVKOM spokesperson, Frank Weigand, said.
The monopoly of the group is abolished at the end of 2007 and it aims to prepare itself for the competition. The number of full-time employees fell by 6,851 to 93,103 in the last few years.
www.handelsblatt.com,http://www.aiidatapro.com