International

Young postal workers from throughout the European Union gathered yesterday in the European Parliament to make clear to MEPs their disquiet over the consequences of the liberalisation of the post. Somewhat shocked by how few Euro-MPs were prepared to listen to their concerns, their reaction was put into words by a British postman who said that he was angry with the Brussels politicians. ‘It’s scandalous that they can push through liberalisation here when, aside from a few big corporations, nobody is happy with it, and then they refuse to meet with the postal workers.’

The liberalisation of the postal market has, in many European countries, caused a great deal of concern amongst the workforce and the general population. During previous debates in the European Parliament on the consequences of postal liberalisation, it emerged that many MEPs many parliamentarians had received complaints from concerned citizens. ”It’s disappointing that almost all of these people ducked out of meeting with the visiting postal workers,” says SP Euro-MP Dennis de Jong. “I hope that they will nevertheless take their concerns and those of the general population seriously and support me with the petition of Euro-MPs for a sound postal sector.”

The petition is an initiative from De Jong and a number of other MEPs not only from the United Left, to which the SP is affiliated, but from the Greens, Social Democrats, Liberals and Christian Democrats. The petition, which has the support of the international postal workers’ federation Uni-global Union, calls on the European Commission to refrain from imposing fines on countries on countries which have not yet liberalised their postal markets as required by the EU Directive, and urges the prioritisation of quality services and decent working conditions.