Postal strike: a dispute that is spreading

Across the territory, staff are calling for additional staff to ensure that all offices remain open, but also to serve members of the public properly rather than ‘on an assembly-line basis’. Three staff members who were promoted have left the service but have not been replaced. Those still in post rotate between the offices in Marigot, Grand Case and Howell Centre… though to a lesser extent at the latter, as it has only been open for one week since July and is now under threat of closure. The two staff members assigned there are sent to help out at Marigot, but this is not enough. The Quartier d’Orléans post office is run by staff from the Collectivité and is therefore unable to offer the full range of Banque Postale services. Customers are also turning to the Marigot branch, where the queue is getting longer and longer, with an average waiting time of two hours. To partially address the staff shortage, staff representatives are asking management to approve the transfer of one of their colleagues from Saint-Martin, who is currently posted in Guadeloupe and wishes to return to the island.

More services but fewer staff

Post office staff assigned to customer service, the ‘front office’, must now carry out certain banking transactions previously handled by financial advisers. In practice, it is the same staff who, through a rota system, must ensure the smooth running of the three post offices.
The postal workers we met on Monday morning in Marigot are simply keen to do their jobs by welcoming customers in a calmer environment… although they point out that this is difficult to guarantee given the internet connection issues, which have become increasingly frequent since the installation of fibre-optic broadband in Marigot. This is complicated in this all-digital age, where people who speak foreign languages, are illiterate or elderly need assistance with their administrative procedures… once again, it is the staff who provide this service – a distinctive feature of Saint Martin – in French, English, Spanish and Creole. This takes time, and with staff shortages, it takes its toll on the health and well-being of postal workers, leading to burnout.
On Wednesday, the Marigot post office was able to open, as the manager called upon two staff members currently in training, whereas the previous week he had refused to make them available… precisely because they are in training, the strikers protest.
Backed by the inter-union group (FO.COM, CGT-FAPT and SUD PTT GWA), the postal workers are demanding that vacant posts be filled, that the Howell Centre branch be maintained and kept open in the long term, and that sufficient staff be provided to ensure the regular and normal opening of all post offices across the territory.
Negotiations took place on 5 and 9 October with management, but were unsuccessful. All postal workers, with the exception of one, remain on strike and the Marigot post office remains closed.

Call for an indefinite department-wide strike

We have contacted La Poste management in Guadeloupe, who state that they are doing everything possible to resolve this dispute. They indicate that they made proposals to the representatives during last week’s meetings, but that these were not accepted by the strikers. A further meeting was held on Monday afternoon, attended by the regional director (Saint-Martin). Management also wishes to clarify that financial advisers are not on strike and are still seeing clients by appointment, and that services are available online (laposte.fr) or by calling 3639.
However, the strike notice filed by the inter-union group, which comes into effect this Tuesday, will extend the dispute to the whole of Guadeloupe and the Northern Islands, this time involving all sectors: postal workers, banking advisers and the sorting centre. Once again, management claims to have begun negotiations to ensure a return to normality as soon as possible. The strikers, for their part, have announced an indefinite strike… until their demands are met.