Tag: Domestic

US Teamsters seek independent FedEx board chairman

Posted by | Sep 2, 2008 | |

The U.S. Teamsters union said that it sent a letter to shareholders of package delivery company FedEx Corp urging them to support a union proposal to elect an independent board chairman.

FedEx’s annual shareholder meeting will be held September 29 in Memphis, Tennessee.

The Teamsters have been fighting for years to unionize drivers at FedEx unit FedEx Ground, arguing that the independent contractors the company uses should be classified as employees and entitled to benefits.

FedEx says the drivers are entrepreneurs and should not be classified as employees.

The Teamsters union represents drivers at FedEx’s main rival United Parcel Service Inc.

The company said the Teamsters’ proposal would not be beneficial to shareholders.

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Unreasonable offer by Canada Post prompts strike vote

Posted by | Sep 2, 2008 | |

Canada Post Corporation has taken an unreasonable approach to bargaining during the late stages of negotiations and employees will take a strike vote over the coming weeks to protect their rights.

The negotiations started in the spring of 2008, and the union says the employer is refusing to address the workers’ demands.

The main issues at the bargaining table continue to be: protections
against unreasonable measurements and surveillance of individual employees,
workload-management issues, a fair benefits package, fair wages and bargaining
unit protection. Canada Post has previously negotiated similar settlements
with other unions.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) bargaining team tabled a thoughtful and comprehensive offer of settlement last week, but Canada Post remains reluctant to commit to any proposal of substance.

The union will not agree to concessions for its members and says only a
substantial improvement in Canada Post’s offer could prevent a strike.

The collective agreement between UPCE/PSAC and Canada Post expired on
August 31, 2008. The union served the employer a notice to bargain on May 1,
2008, and the negotiations began on June 4, 2008.

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Poll results confirm large majority opposes postal deregulation

Posted by | Sep 2, 2008 | |

A new Ipsos Reid poll shows 69 per cent of the public oppose allowing private companies to deliver letters in Canada. The release of this poll coincides with the final ay for submissions to the Canada Post Corporation Strategic Review, a government-appointed panel which is considering postal deregulation.

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) delivered its submission, which includes the poll results, and over 10,000 post cards to the review’s advisory panel today.

The poll CUPW commissioned shows that 46 per cent strongly oppose and 23 per cent of people somewhat oppose allowing private companies to deliver letters in Canada. Conversely, 9 per cent of people strongly support and 18 per cent of people somewhat support allowing private sector competition.

The public isn’t alone in their opposition to postal deregulation. Close to 400 municipal councils from across the country have also passed resolutions against postal deregulation.

The strategic review panel will release a final report with recommendations in December.
The survey was conducted from August 12-14, 2008.

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Royal Mail privatisation likely (UK)

Posted by | Sep 1, 2008 | |

The Communication Workers Union says that Royal Mail should be a public service first and a business second, is not keen on the idea of privatisation and has accused the government of allowing the service to be run down to push through privatisation plans. The postal regulator, Postcomm, denies this, saying that it has been a greater than expected take-up of electronic communications such as email that has eroded Royal Mail’s business and that without private capital, Royal Mail’s future is grim. Adam Crozier, Chief Executive at Royal Mail, said that Royal Mail was not against the idea of partnerships that would introduce private capital.

It is unclear in what form private investment would be, but it would require a splitting up of Royal Mail to encourage investors, with Parcelforce probably the most lucrative part of Royal Mail. Postcomm is keen to see an arrangement that would provide a sustainable source of funding for the USO rather than leaving the country to pick up the cost.

The EU says that each country can effectively make its own arrangements for the USO providing it complies with EU rules. If Royal Mail were privatised but the pension deficit offloaded to the entire country as well as the funding for the USO, deregulation would be a complete disaster, so Postcomm will be keen to see that any investment will underpin the USO.

In all probability, large chunks of Royal Mail’s business will be privatised over the next ten years and with no one really certain as to just how low the decline in mail business is likely to drop, private capital is unlikely to be worth as much to Royal Mail as it is now. A report into the state of the UK’s postal service expected in October will almost certainly underline the urgency of a sell-off.

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DX Group acquires the In-night and PX worldwide licensing operations of Business Direct (UK)

Posted by | Sep 1, 2008 | |

DX Group Ltd announced its acquisition of the trade and assets of the following operations from Business Direct Limited and Business Direct Group plc:

In-Night – a national infrastructure to provide secure parcel logistics, primarily supporting field based engineers, through:
– The Parcel Exchange (“PX”) – a nationwide “virtual depot” network of over 4,000 fully automated intelligent drop boxes
– In-Boot – collection and deliveries direct to a field engineer’s vehicle
– PUDO – Pick Up Drop Off, the collection and return of spare parts via manned third party locations

PX Worldwide Licensing – the licensing of the PX technology to interested parties.

For DX, the acquisition of these operations represents the opportunity to:
– become a leading player in the adjacent service management market
– develop the services available to In-Night customers from the integration of aspects of the these operations with existing DX operations
– use the secure PX network to extend the services we offer to existing DX Group customers
– market the PX concept internationally via licensing arrangements
– develop the emerging potential for extending the PX concept to service the rapidly expanding B2C market

Terms of the acquisition have not been disclosed.

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