The German postal service, Deutsche Post, is on the brink of an interminable stoppage, with no end in sight. This industrial action has the potential to cause significant disruption to the nation’s postal system.

A vote by the Verdi union showed that the majority of workers oppose Deutsche Post management’s proposal, so an indefinite strike will take place. This action can significantly delay the delivery of millions of parcels and letters.

Collective bargaining between Deutsche Post employers and the Verdi union will continue, although during the vote 85.9% of those polled had already opposed the post office’s wage offer and decided to strike indefinitely. . Andrea Kocis, representative of the Verdi union during the negotiations, said this in response to the post office’s request: “Employers should take this vote very seriously”.

Verdi is demanding a 15% wage increase for postmen, parcel deliverers and other Post & Parcel Germany employees. The management of the company rejects this request as economically unfeasible and offers a much lower amount. Temporary warning strikes had already taken place in January and February, causing millions of shipments to be delayed. With an indefinite strike, many would likely have to wait even longer to receive letters and packages.

Obtain an acceptable result

“It is now the responsibility of Deutsche Post AG to prevent an indefinite strike by modifying, upwards, the management’s financial proposal, which was rejected,” said trade unionist Kotsis. The poll results show the “determination of our members to fight for a good outcome of the collective agreement”. Thomas Ogilvie, director of human resources at Deutsche Post, said the aim was “to achieve an acceptable and profitable result in the short term”.

Large and prolonged strikes are rare for Deutsche Post. This will be the second perpetual promotion in the last eight years. In 2015, it lasted four weeks; previously, several warning strikes had taken place over several months. At the time, the dissatisfaction was caused by the split of subsidiaries dealing with parcels, with lower wages. At the time, the company estimated the costs at 100 million euros.

Bad fiscal year

At the end of 2022, Post & Parcel Germany, which delivers letters and parcels in the country, employed around 192,000 people. According to Verdi, the collective agreement covers about 160,000 of them. The others are civil servants, non-tariff workers and employees covered by other collective agreements. Post & Parcel Germany had a weak business year with declining profits, which the company said was due to high costs for energy, transportation and seasonal workers.

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