Green targets delivery centers and certain postal services - Verdi conducts assaults on parcel facilities and certain mail hubs
If you're expected to receive a package from DHL on hump day, you might need to practice patience – it could end up landing in your mailbox the day after. The reason behind this potential delay is due to nighttime work stoppages in package centers. In the ongoing labor dispute between Verdi and Deutsche Post, the union is once again instigating warning strikes. Declaring this on Tuesday evening, Verdi urged all employees in DHL's package centers across the country to join the nighttime work stoppages during late and night shifts, extending until Wednesday morning. Furthermore, selected sorting centers, like those in Freiburg, Pforzheim, and Waiblingen (Baden-Württemberg) as well as Celle and Göttingen (Lower Saxony) and Bremen, are also included in this action.
Verdi aims to intensify pressure on the employers to agree to a substantial wage hike, which is currently sitting at 7 percent for a 12-month contract applicable to nearly 170,000 postal workers, package delivery drivers, and other logistics employees. However, DHL, owned by Deutsche Post, is offering a more moderate raise initially of 1.8 percent, and later an additional 2.0 percent, extending over a 27-month contract.
Verdi is also pushing for three extra vacation days to compensate for an increase in workload. Verdi members would even receive four days off. In contrast, Deutsche Post is only offering one extra vacation day for employees with less than 30 vacation days a year – amounting to approximately two-thirds of the workforce.
The current state of the labor negotiations seems stuck in a stalemate, with three previous sessions resulting in no agreement. The fourth round is slated for Monday. A DHL spokesperson voiced their dissatisfaction, stating, "The call for further warning strikes is unnecessary and detrimental to our customers."
Verdi has repeatedly urged warning strikes in various areas, both in the package and letter sectors, causing significant delivery delays in some places. Verdi's deputy chair, Andrea Kocsis, described DHL's offer as "wholly insufficient" when considering the significant increase in living costs for employees.
DHL, however, insists on a fiscally sound contract, citing dropping letter volumes and substantial investment needs, which it asserts leaves little room for wage increases.
DHL's package deliveries might be affected on Monday due to potential worker stoppages at the package centers, as Verni has called for nighttime strikes in response to the ongoing labor dispute. Despite DHL's initial offer of a moderate wage increase, Verdi is demanding a substantial hike of 7% for their members, who include package delivery drivers and other logistics employees. The increased workload caused by this dispute has led Verdi to push for additional vacation days, with members potentially receiving up to four days off.
