Tag: Europe

German government coalition parties fail to agree on postal minimum wage

Posted by | Nov 13, 2007 | |

German government parties conservatives CDU/CSU and Social Democrats SPD last night failed to agree on the introduction of minimum wages for postal workers.

In a meeting of a mutual committee governing coalition issues, the two parties were set to decide whether a minimum wage agreement concluded between Deutsche Post World Net AG and services union ver.di will be extended to the whole industry.

Kurt Beck, head of SPD, said after the meeting chancellor Angela Merkel suggested a single minimum wage of 8 eur per hour instead of the 8-9.80 eur range of Deutsche Post’s wage agreement.

Volker Kauder, head of CDU/CSU’s parliamentary faction said this agreement did not match requirements to be extended to the whole industry.

The government earlier agreed to make the agreement mandatory for Deutsche Post’s competitors if it covers more than 50 pct of postal workers.

Deutsche Post’s competitors, mostly TNT NV’s TNT Post and Pin AG, will lose their cost advantages if Deutsche Post’s minimum wage agreement is extended to the whole industry.

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Consultation Starts On Changes To Post Office® Network – Post Office Ltd announces plans for Sussex

Posted by | Nov 13, 2007 | |

Post Office Ltd today opened a six week local public consultation on its Area Plan for Sussex. In line with the criteria and factors set by the Government in its response document, DTI The Post Office Network, Government Response to Public Consultation May 2007 the Area Plan proposes future provision of Post Office® services through a network of 234 branches across the area, resulting in the closure of 49 existing branches.

Under the proposals more than 99pct of the area’s population will either see no change to their nearest branch, or will remain within one mile (by road distance) of an alternative branch.

Post Office Ltd is proposing to establish two new outreach services in the Sussex area, which would use innovative ways to continue to provide Post Office® services – particularly in smaller communities – where the existing branch is proposed for closure.
Possible types of outreach service in the Sussex area could include a mobile service visiting small communities at set times, a hosted service operated within third party premises for restricted hours each week, or a partner service within the premises of a local partner (such as a pub landlord).

The Government has already undertaken a 12 week national consultation before reaching a decision to reduce the UK wide network of Post Office® branches by up to 2500 from its current level of over 14000 while continuing to provide funding (subject to state aid EU clearance) to support a more sustainable network in the future. The proposals now published support the national accessibility criteria introduced by the Government.

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Austrian Post: Solid development in Q1-Q3 2007

Posted by | Nov 13, 2007 | |

Austrian Post performed very positively in the first nine months of 2007. Austrian Post increased its total revenues by 31.2 pct, to EUR 1,667.3m. A major contribution to the growth in revenues (about EUR 360m) can be attributed to the initial inclusion of trans-o-flex (Parcel & Logistics Division), which was acquired at the end of 2006. On balance, revenues from the Mail Division were up 3.3 pct during the first three quarters of 2007, and the Parcel & Logistics Division improved by 225.1 pct in the same period. In contrast, the Branch Network Division posted a decline in revenues of 2.5 pct. Austrian Post’s performance in the third quarter basically followed the same pattern. Total Austrian Post revenues improved by 34.4 pct in Q3 2007, to EUR 550.4m. Revenues in the Mail Division increased by 6.1 pct compared to Q3 2006, the Parcel & Logistics Division improved by 234.5 pct, whereas Branch Network Division revenues fell by 1.2 pct.

The structure of the income statement of Austrian Post has changed considerably as a result of the consolidation of trans-o-flex, which features a very flexible cost structure, comparatively low staff costs and a high level of external services used. Accordingly, Austrian Post’s staff costs now only comprise about 50 pct of total revenues (previously more than 60 pct), whereas the share of expenses for raw materials, consumables and services used has climbed to roughly 29 pct of total revenues (previously about 15 pct).

In the first three quarters of 2007, the EBIT (earnings before interest and tax) of Austrian Post increased by 26.2 pct, to EUR 118.3m, in comparison to the preceding year. Accordingly, the EBIT margin amounted to 7.1 pct. In Q3 2007, Austrian Post achieved an EBIT of EUR 33.3m, up from EUR 27.4m in Q3 2006.

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Postwatch release UK Post office research

Posted by | Nov 13, 2007 | |

Postwatch has released research on standards of service at post offices – focussing in particular on queuing, facilities and quality of advice. This research was conducted by Ipsos MORI, and builds on a similar exercise we undertook last year. Some of the main findings are:

– The overall average waiting time increased from 4 minutes 6 seconds in 2006 to 4 minutes 48 seconds in 2007.
– Between 2006 and 2007 there have been some notable improvements in facilities for customers with disabilities, with only 2 percent of post offices not having any facilities, compared to 10 percent in 2006.
– In over 90 percent of occasions, customer advisors correctly suggested Special Delivery as the most appropriate way of sending an item.

Good news that post offices are making progress in improving facilities and customer advice. Improvements for customers with disabilities are particularly welcome.

It is of concern, however, particularly given the forthcoming closure of 2,500 post offices, that queuing times have increased. This research should ensure Post Office Ltd is alert to potential pressures in the network. Postwatch will continue to locally monitor queuing at branches and raise concerns any problems we find with Post Office Ltd.

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Austrian Post to cut jobs in parcels business as part of three-point plan

Posted by | Nov 12, 2007 | |

The supervisory board of Oesterreichische Post AG (Austrian Post) has agreed to reduce the number of employees in its parcels business in order to compensate for the loss of a major client from next year.

In a statement, Austrian Post said its board has given the go-ahead for a three-point plan, which involves reducing the number of employees in the parcels division, implementing further acquisitions in the B2B segment, and the upgrading of its delivery service.

The ‘service offensive’ plan comes after Austrian Post last week said it will lose catalogue-order company Quelle Oesterreich as a major client from next year, and issued a warning saying it expects operating results to be reduced by around 20 mln eur a year as a result.

No changes will be made to the existing board of directors, Austrian Post said.

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