Tag: Germany

Deutsche Post workers stage warning strikes to support union's wage demands

Posted by | Apr 1, 2008 | |

Some 5,000 employees at Deutsche Post World Net AG are temporarily halting work this morning to back demands by services union ver.di during wage negotiations with the German mail services company, a union said.

Some 6 million letters and 150,000 parcels will not be delivered today due to the warning strikes, Sigrun Schmid, ver.di’s industrial action leader said.

She said mail delivery in 14 German cities is affected, including Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and Frankfurt.

Wage agreements that banned compulsory redundancies of Deutsche Post’s 130,000 employees and limits weekly working hours of some 55,000 civil servants to 38.5 hours per week expired Monday.

Deutsche Post extended the agreements until end of June to allow more time for negotiations.

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Deutsche Post World Net sells real estate portfolio to investor

Posted by | Apr 1, 2008 | |

Deutsche Post World Net announced that it has reached an agreement to sell a portfolio of real estate properties comprising about 1,300 assets located mainly in Germany to U.S. investor Lone Star in a cash transaction worth 1 billion euros.

Deutsche Post World Net is divesting real estate assets as part of its “Roadmap to Value” capital markets program presented in November. “We are very committed to the Roadmap to Value initiatives and this transaction again demonstrates our constant focus on quick execution,” said Chief Financial Officer John Allan.

Today’s transaction comes on top of some 350 million euros of real estate sales agreed since last November. The Group thus has already more than delivered on its pledge to generate at least 1 billion euros in cash from real estate sales by 2009. The all-cash sale price will be paid in several tranches with the largest share expected by year-end 2008. The agreement will have only marginal effect on Group EBIT and will not affect the 2008 earnings guidance.

Under the terms of the agreement, the transfer of the real estate assets will take economic effect as of July 1, 2008. Deutsche Post World Net will lease back the major part of the properties under an innovative lease agreement giving the Group immediate relief from excess space and flexibility going forward. The transaction will not lead to any changes for customers or employees.

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DHL moves European air hub from Brussels to Leipzig

Posted by | Mar 31, 2008 | |

DHL Express officially moved its European air hub from Brussels to Leipzig over the weekend following a gradual build-up of operations over the last year. The launch of full hub operations reportedly went off without any major problems.

With the transfer of the former Brussels flights, DHL is initially operating 57 freighters each night to and from Leipzig, with the option to increase the number to more than 60 in the next few weeks. Some 30 planes had previously been operating every night at Leipzig.

As a result of the hub transfer, the nightly freight capacity will also nearly double from 800 tons to 1500 tons and 16 additional destinations will be added to the new hub including New York, Moscow, Madrid, Rome and Athens.

Local newspapers reported today that the start of full hub operations at Leipzig appeared to have gone off without any serious problems. This is in contrast to the massive operational difficulties that impacted on the launch of the US air hub at Wilmington several years ago. Leipzig, Wilmington and Hong Kong are DHL Express’ three intercontinental air hubs.

According to Michael Reinboth, managing director of the DHL air hub in Leipzig, DHL expects to increase its daily express freight capacity to 2000 tons and to have invested a total of EUR 300 million in the new hub by 2012. “By that time we expect to increase the number of employees to 3,500,” he told the German newspaper Mitteldeutsche Zeitung. Currently, DHL employs about 2000 people at the airport.

To limit the noise pollution that people living and working around Leipzig airport are exposed to, DHL plans to use B-757 freighters that produce 77 pct less noise and consume 20 pct less fuel than previous types. DHL will also operate other planes such as MD-11s, A300s and Tupolew 204s, mainly flying via Eastern Europe, Reinboth explained.

The hub will officially open on May 26 with a major opening ceremony.

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EU's McCreevy complains to France, Germany, 6 other states over postal services

Posted by | Mar 27, 2008 | |

EU internal market commissioner Charlie McCreevy has complained to France, Germany and six other member states over lack of competition in their postal services markets, his spokesman said.

The other countries are Austria, Belgium, Finland, the Netherlands, Poland and Slovakia, the spokesman said.

‘The commissioner sent a letter to all 27 member states on postal services,’ he said, adding that McCreevy singled out eight countries for criticism.

EU countries have to implement the European Commission’s liberalisation measures by Dec 31, 2010.

The spokesman confirmed that Dutch group TNT NV has filed a formal complaint with the commission against minimum wages in the German postal industry.

The commission is concerned about the minimum wages and a VAT exemption enjoyed by German mail incumbent Deutsche Post World Net AG.

The German government last autumn decided to make minimum wages paid at Deutsche Post mandatory for the whole industry.

TNT claims that the German government is violating EU regulations that ensure free and fair competition among EU members operating across borders.

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TNT files complaint with the European Commission about Germany’s postal sector minimum wage

Posted by | Mar 27, 2008 | |

TNT has filed a complaint with the European Commission about the introduction of a euro 9.80 minimum wage for all postal carriers in Germany, which violates European Union rules.

The German government’s decision to declare the minimum wage generally binding violates the European treaty on competition and freedom of establishment. Under the cover of social reasons, it aims to raise the costs of Deutsche Post’s rivals, hinder competition, and shield the historic monopolist from the impact of market liberalisation and the realisation of a single European postal market.

“Some Member States are taking protectionist measures to circumvent the Postal Directive. European customers deserve more than a cosmetic liberalisation,” says Peter Bakker, CEO of TNT. “By filing our complaint, we join in the European Commission’s efforts to ensure fair competition.”

On 7 March 2008, the Berlin Administrative Court in first instance ruled that the German State had failed to consider the economic impact on competitors when introducing the euro 9.80 minimum wage. The German government publicly disregards the ruling.

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