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UNI’s Post & Logistics world committee meeting in Nyon this week began with an opening broadside against Amazon’s exploitation of workers and a commitment to the global postal service.

UNI’s Head of Post & Logistics, Stephen DeMatteo said, “The crucial underlying challenge for us in post & logistics is the impact of the digital revolution of the past 15 years. Technological transformation and changing societal norms continue to drive down letter mail volume. This is a trend we expect to continue well into the future and it places our traditional power base of membership in national post offices at tremendous risk. It is a challenge we are ready to meet.

As unions globally, and across sectors, we need to ensure that the Amazon model is not the new model for employment in the 21st Century.

We also need to address the challenges of modernizing systems and new methods of work that come with a sector that is increasingly reliant on parcel shipping.”

UNI Global Union General Secretary, Philip Jennings in his opening address put the post and logistics sector into the broader picture, and how the labour movement is successfully influencing the UN’s global sustainability goals. He drew out the importance of a vibrant global post & logistics sector based on decent work and respect for workers’ rights.  

“It is no coincidence that the UNI Post & Logistics World Conference takes place in Istanbul next year to coincide with the UPU Congress in the same city. UNI has a global framework agreement with the UPU and we will be telling UPU members that they cannot act irresponsibly in their own countries while talking about rights at the global level. UNI Post & Logistics is taking fight from the national to the global level. We are fighting back.”

Jennings’ urged affiliates who had gathered from postal unions from around the world to strive for positive change under the banners of ‘Breaking Through’ and ‘Including You’ – a theme already adopted by the UN as part of its sustainable goals strategy.

The affiliates debated challenges faced by both their sector and the wider trade union movement – examples being proposed anti-union legislation in both the UK and Finland as well as Spanish trade unionists facing criminal charges for protesting. In Germany, earlier this year, ver.di was forced to take major strike action when Deutsche Post announced plans to outsource 10,000 postal workers into low-wage subsidiaries the company had created itself. UNI Post & Logistics affiliates from Latin America warned of a wave new anti-trade union activity in their region.

Despite challenges faced by the broader trade union movement and specific challenges to Post & Logistics, including privatisation and deregulation, the affiliates remained bullish.

Union Postkom’s Ingeborg Saetre who takes over the presidency of UNI Post & Logistics from the CWU’s Billy Hayes until the world congress agreed that “we must collectively reignite the flame of ambition.”

The UNI Post & Logistics world committee meeting thanked Billy Hayes, in his absence, for his massive contribution to the cause and welcomed Ingeborg Saetre and wished her every success.