A Deutsche Post spokesperson said Tuesday that the union was ignoring the fact that the Federal Network Agency had not given the postal service sufficient leeway for postage increases, even though the company is facing declining letter volumes and needs to invest in the letter business. "Nevertheless, we will approach the negotiations constructively and with a view to finding a solution," he announced. The aim was "a good and sustainable long-term result." The DHL subsidiary Post and Verdi will begin negotiations on Wednesday (tomorrow) for the approximately 170,000 employees covered by the collective agreement.
"Only with significant wage increases can the still high costs and food prices be managed," said Verdi negotiator Andrea Kocsis, explaining the wage demand that was already presented last November. She also called for three more days of vacation for employees and an additional day of vacation for Verdi members at the post office. "Due to the increasing volume and weight of parcels, our members need further relief in the form of additional free time," said Kocsis. The term of a new collective agreement should be twelve months.
"In a difficult economic environment with low inflation at the same time, securing employment is our top priority as an employer," the Post Office stated in response. It wants to "achieve a balance between wage increases for our employees and economic viability".
Post and Verdi had last agreed on a complex collective agreement package in spring 2023 after massive warning strikes by the union, which, according to the group, provided for an average increase in wages and salaries of 11.5 percent. As a result, the Post Office had stated that in view of the "very high collective agreement", there was no way around an increase in letter postage rates. However, the Federal Network Agency blocked early postage increases.
At the beginning of the year, however, the Post Office was then able to turn the price screw. The price for the mass-market standard letter product increased from 85 to 95 cents around January 1. Overall, the regulator, the Federal Network Agency, had given the Post Office leeway for price increases in the letter segment of 10.48 percent on average from January to December 31, 2026. The Post had criticized this as being too low. "It doesn't make economic sense," said CFO Melanie Kreis. It remains to be seen how this will affect the collective bargaining.
(Report by Matthias Inverardi, edited by Ralf Banser. If you have any questions, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and the economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)