Cosas de Carteros

The Dutch parliament is set to vote tomorrow (26 April) on a controversial bill to open the postal market to full competition.

The vote, which has been delayed from 24 April, tackles the controversial subject of liberalising deliveries under fifty grams - the so-called ‘reserved area’. TNT, the national operator and designated universal service provider, would be subject to competition from new entrants, who are not obliged to pay hourly wages to staff. In many cases, as the unions have alleged in their advocacy toward members of parliament, this will lead to employees of the competitors being paid under the levels of the national minimum wage.

The national debate rages at a crucial time for the European postal sector. The legislative process in Brussels is now well under way regarding the revision of the European postal services directive. The European Commission have proposed full market opening for the sector on 1 January 2009 and the end of the ‘reserved area’, the sole financing mechanism for the universal service obligation. The Commission’s proposed financing mechanisms in the wake of this change have been heavily criticised by UNI Postal and its affiliates, as well as by many prominent Members of the European Parliament.

More on this story will be available here, April 26th..
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un abrazo pepe.