Postal workers in national walk-out
Strikes have been called across France today as postal workers protest at planned reforms at La Poste
POSTAL workers are striking across France today over plans to open up La Poste – a move which unions fear will lead to privatisation.
However, although five unions have called the strike it is not clear how many workers will respond or how effective it will be.
The disruption started in Paris – where 140 jobs have been lost this year – and it was estimated by management and union sources that between 20%-40% of staff walked out this week. None of the 185 post offices was closed.
A mass meeting of workers is due to take place this afternoon at the postal service HQ in Montparnasse followed by a protest march to the Senate.
The dispute is over plans to change La Poste from a joint-stock company into a public company because of European legislation. The government is providing €2.7 billion via the state-owned Caisse des Depots bank for the plan.
Unions and the Socialist Party say the changes are not necessary as the state can fund the service through subsidies, as a joint-stock company would only serve to make privatisation easier.
Industry minister Christian Estrosi said this week he would support opposition amendments to guarantee that La Poste would remain a public body.
UMP spokesman Frédéric Lefebvre said that if nothing was done then “the post office for which every French person had affection, would vanish” when the sector was liberalised across Europe in 2011.
Volumes of mail at La Poste were down 3% last year and 1% in 2007 but it was still profitable because of its banking wing, which made a gross operating profit of €1.85billion in 2008, although profits were down 19%.
Meanwhile, postal workers in the UK are voting on a planned national strike over pay, job security and services, with localised disruptions already having hit Cambridge, Glasgow and London. There is said to be a backlog of an estimated 25 million items.
