Brazil Postal Service Goes on Strike.

Post by **TrueBlueTerrier** » 16 Sep 2007, 09:48

http://www.brazzilmag.com/content/view/8646/1/

Written by Isabela Vieira
Thursday, 13 September 2007

Brazilian Postal workers gather to vote strike in SÃ£o Paulo Starting today, post office branches throughout Brazil will be closed. Gathered in meetings in several states the workers at ECT (Brazilian Postal and Telegraph Company) decided to go on strike for undetermined time until their demands for bigger salaries and better work conditions are met.

JosÃ© GonÃ§alves JacÃ³, the director of ECT's Workers National Federation believes that 100,000 of the 110,000 postal workers will join the strikers. In the southern state of ParanÃ¡, for example, about 80% of the ECT employees have already stopped their activities, according to the president of ParanÃ¡'s Post Office Workers Union, Nilson Rodrigues dos Santos.

In the negotiations round held Wednesday, September 12, informed JacÃ³, the ECT offered to hike wages by 3.74%, while the workers are asking for a 47% raise plus what they call "real wage hike" of 200 reais (about US$ 100). In its counterproposal the postal service offered 50 reais (about US$ 25), which will not be paid before January of next year.

"This is very little," explained JacÃ³. A mailman has initial salary of R$ 524 (about US$ 250) while a director gets about 24,000 reais (about US$ 12,000). We want a process of salary recovery."

Workers are demanding more than better wages. They also want maternity leave for six months and hazardous work supplement. "Today, mailmen endure a bigger incidence of skin cancer as well as dog attacks, assaults and other accidents," justified the president of the ParanÃ¡'s union.

Opening Capital

Maybe this is not the best time for the announcement, but the Brazilian Ministry of Communications made known that it is studying the opening of the capital of the national Postal Services as an alternative for modernizing and expanding the company. The information was given by the minister of Communications, HÃ©lio Costa.

"The opening of capital is under discussion. Just as the Petrobras (state-owned oil company) did, and just as others state-owned companies did. It is a hypothesis," said the minister, calling attention to the fact that the measure does not entail privatization, in which case the Union would control the company.

The minister submitted yesterday to the minister of Finance, Guido Mantega, the proposal for expansion of the Postal Service, of which, according to him, president Luiz InÃ¡cio Lula da Silva was already aware.

Costa claimed that after the president's trip to Europe, a meeting is scheduled to discuss the proposals and their impact upon the Postal Service.

According to the minister, the establishment of a large logistics company, linked to the state-owned one, would be another alternative for catering to the "huge demand" in the order delivery market.

"We are forecasting an increase of over 100% for next year. Either the Postal Services will prepare itself, or it will end up losing this market," he stated.

Another proposal would be the restructuring of the Postal Bank, which currently functions in partnership with privately owned bank Bradesco.

According to HÃ©lio Costa, the bank has 5,200 branches, around 5,000 accounts are opened per day, and 10 billion Brazilian reais (US$ 5.1 billion) are deposited.

borders · Post by **borders** » 16 Sep 2007, 10:16

sounds all too familiar, maybe a co-ordinated world strike would do the trick !!??

L Tommo · Post by **L Tommo** » 16 Sep 2007, 19:39

I fancy a bit of flying picketing... You recon old Billy will sub me to get over there???

"THERES AN AWFUL LOT OF COFFEE IN BRAZIL." (bet the screws over there LOVE IT?)

I feel a copa cocacobana moment coming on....

ENTRE TEEBS & EMOTICON...

OUT

Post by **dvbuk55** » 16 Sep 2007, 19:42

I don't suppose those nubile Brazilian beauties would persuade anyone to offer picket duty over there - I'd go myself but the wife said no!

Post by **TrueBlueTerrier** » 16 Sep 2007, 19:43

L Tommo · Post by **L Tommo** » 16 Sep 2007, 19:50

Uve Never let me down Teebs mate!!!

(WHISPERS) LOUD.. "WHY aint we got a THANK YOU BUTTON ON ERE??"

OUT

jafferpants · Post by **jafferpants** » 17 Sep 2007, 14:02

HAY TOMMO YOU'D HAVE TO BE" NUT'S "TO CO OVER THERE. MIND YOU I WOULDN'T MIND SEEING YOU DO A SAMBA.

L Tommo · Post by **L Tommo** » 17 Sep 2007, 14:19

I recon a Samba aint out of my dancing exploits..

Cuz was out there a while after he came back from the Falklands... Spent3 months n said it is a wonderful place... Poor is very poor and rich like kings just on the other side of the road... Crazy and made you feel humble... I think everybody should see this kind of poverty in there lives to see how things could be if we never stood up to parasites and fat cats... WE SUPPOSED TO BE CIVILISED IN THIS COUNTRY??? NOT IF :cfo :lfo AND THERE MATES GET THERE WAY IT WONT BE... People the world over are all striving to better themselves but it dont make em scab or shite on the people around and with them...

U CANT BUY CLASS... REAL CLASS is the woman with kids and refuses to take the dole and would rather work...

Not shite like these :cfo :lfo

out

ROYALMAILCHAT

Brazil Postal Service Goes on Strike.

Brazil Postal Service Goes on Strike.

Jaffs mate...