TNT says Dutch labour deal not enough to open market
A deal struck by trade unions and rivals of Dutch mail company to include their workers in a national collective wage agreement is not enough to ensure a level playing field and justify opening the domestic market, TNT said on Friday.
The Dutch government has made its planned liberalisation of the Dutch mail market dependant on negotiations between delivery companies and Dutch postal workers which aim to include all workers in a collective wage deal.
The mail market’s liberalisation had originally been scheduled for January.
TNT, Europe’s second-biggest mail company, whose workers are covered by the collective wage agreement, has seen rivals privately-owned Sandd and Deutsche Post’s
Dutch unit Selekt Mail eat into its market share and profitability in the lucrative domestic market.
Sandd and Selekt Mail signed an agreement in principle with some labour unions regarding labour conditions on Thursday, TNT said.
“This agreement by no means fulfils the conditions for opening the market. It is far too vague and there are no guarantees built into it,” its spokesman Pieter Schaffels said.
TNT’s subsidiary Netwerk VSP, which employs 24,000 part-time workers, will not sign the agreement, he said.
“We want to see first if this is what politicians want,” said Schaffels. He said main trade union ABVAKABO FNV has also not signed the deal as it shares the same concern.
A deal struck by trade unions and rivals of Dutch mail company to include their workers in a national collective wage agreement is not enough to ensure a level playing field and justify opening the domestic market, TNT said on Friday.
The Dutch government has made its planned liberalisation of the Dutch mail market dependant on negotiations between delivery companies and Dutch postal workers which aim to include all workers in a collective wage deal.
The mail market’s liberalisation had originally been scheduled for January.
TNT, Europe’s second-biggest mail company, whose workers are covered by the collective wage agreement, has seen rivals privately-owned Sandd and Deutsche Post’s
Dutch unit Selekt Mail eat into its market share and profitability in the lucrative domestic market.
Sandd and Selekt Mail signed an agreement in principle with some labour unions regarding labour conditions on Thursday, TNT said.
“This agreement by no means fulfils the conditions for opening the market. It is far too vague and there are no guarantees built into it,” its spokesman Pieter Schaffels said.
TNT’s subsidiary Netwerk VSP, which employs 24,000 part-time workers, will not sign the agreement, he said.
“We want to see first if this is what politicians want,” said Schaffels. He said main trade union ABVAKABO FNV has also not signed the deal as it shares the same concern.
