Romanian Post workers protest in Bucharest over layoffs and salary reduction

Around 500 union members working for the state-owned Romanian Post have started protesting this morning in front of Romania’s Communication Ministry over the layoffs the company has announced. The Romanian Post has been bleeding money for years and its management is trying to restructure the company. It has announced its plans to axe 1,400 jobs while closing down some of its units across Romania and reducing salaries by 10 percent. Employees are worried that the company’s management has done nothing to add new services and new sources of income for the Romanian Post, while only cutting costs. Union leaders for the Romanian Post complain about the lack of office supplies in the Post offices in Romania, which has triggered workers to pitch in and buy supplies using their own funds. The Romanian Post has 34,000 employees and 6,100 Post units in Romania. The company plans to open a bank and an insurance company and hopes to achieve profit this year, after posting a loss of EUR 29 million out of a turnover of EUR 327 million last year. So far, 900 Post units have been closed and some other 450 units would also be shut down, leading to a staff reduction of 1,400. editor@romania-insider.com (photo source: Romanian Post)