PostNL scrapping up to 300 jobs to cut costs

PostNL plans to cut 200 to 300 full-time jobs in 2023, the postal company reported during the early hours of Monday morning. The company is also taking other measures to cut costs. PostNL employs about 37,000 people.

“The year 2022 was a year in which we had to navigate a rapidly changing and turbulent environment. The global macroeconomic and geopolitical environment was extremely challenging, with record high inflation and consumer confidence reaching an all-time low, which had an impact on our results,” said CDO Herna Verhagen.

According to Verhagen, the challenging conditions will likely continue this year. ‘It is therefore crucial that we continue to invest in strengthening our foundations and strengthening our position in a dynamic and highly competitive market.”

In total, PostNL is setting aside 20 million euros for the reorganization. The cutbacks mainly affect the Parcels department. Another 25 million euros must be saved in 2024, and 30 million euros annually from 2025.

PostNL is also postponing the second part of the share buyback program, which was to be implemented in the course of 2023, until the company’s results recover further. The first tranche of the program, with a total value of 250 million euros, was completed in 2022.

The company saw turnover in the fourth quarter fall to 883 million euros from 936 million euros a year ago. Profit from continuing operations fell from 61 million euros to 27 million euros in Q4. For the full year, turnover amounted to 3.1 billion euros, compared to 3.5 billion euros in 2021. Profit amounted to 26 million euros, compared to 228 million euros the previous financial year.

Forecasts for package volumes remain uncertain in the short term, according to the company. PostNL assumes a slight decrease in volume for 2023, also considering a small loss of market share. According to the company, the costs are also increasing and are not fully compensated by its price adjustments.