The New Zealand Trade Union is advocating for a ‘Just Transition’ for more than 700 postal workers in the wake of a major redundancy proposal.

On Tuesday, New Zealand Post announced plans to reduce its mail processing and delivery operations in Auckland and Christchurch over the next five years.

NZ Post Chief Executive David Walsh says New Zealanders have drastically changed the way they choose to communicate. 

“Our business is evolving as New Zealanders are increasingly communicating online, and NZ Post has responded to this by making a number of changes over the last decade.

“We are working to find the most efficient and cost effective way to deliver the lower volume of mail for our customers.

NZ Post continues to evolve in response to mail decline and will soon begin consultation on reducing the number of mail roles by about 750 FTE over the next five years. NZ Post has a workforce of 4,500.  

E tū has signed a Just Transition agreement with the company to support and guide E tū members in their transition to new work.

Negotiation Specialist Joe Gallagher said while the proposal is not unexpected in the face of declining global mail rates, a Just Transition is about making sure there is more than “one tool in the toolbox” to assist members.

“A Just Transition process is about workers being treated with fairness, equity, and transparency, so they can focus on things like transferring their skills to other kinds of work, or retraining and upskilling as they explore different options for their futures,” he says.

“E tū strongly supports its members as they go through this difficult time, and we will be advocating for workers to have the best opportunities possible to assist them through the transition period.”

The union also ran a Just Transition process to support New Zealand Post members in Manawatū who lost their jobs when their mail processing centre closed in March.