EU post workers will fight open market

THE news that the European Parliament has rubber-stamped EU Commission plans to open up the EU market for delivering light letters and postcards weighing below 50 grams to full competition from 2011 is yet another attack on the service and other semi-state companies and government agencies that provide a social service.

Little or no recognition has been given to the fact that postal services across the EU, including An Post, provide a universal service — letters delivered and collected at least once a day, five days a week, no matter where — while a uniform tariff between rural and urban areas must also be secured as part of their universal service obligation (USO).

All the talk of liberalising the postal sector is just an elaborate smokescreen by the commission and parliament and various governments which want to flog off the postal service to billionaire speculators.

More than five million people work in the EU postal sector and they intend to fight to defend their jobs and to protect the USO. The EU confederation of unions staged a token one-day strike last June, but much larger protests will be staged EU-wide if necessary.

Paul Kinsella

53 Lorcan Grove

Santry

Dublin 9