The Deutsche Post DHL (DPDHL) Group, the ITF and UNI Global Union have reviewed and strengthened their joint OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) Protocol, originally signed in 2019.
Under the new agreement, signed by the German National Contact Point for the OECD on 25 July, DPDHL, ITF and UNI commit to continuous, constructive dialogue on employment and working relationships. DPDHL further agreed to continue engaging meaningfully with UNI and ITF on ways to enhance procedures to identify, prevent, mitigate and remedy labour and human rights violations in its supply chain.
Joint work plan
To enhance the scope of the dialogue, the three parties agree on a joint work plan for the first time. It focuses on topics of common interest and on future challenges. In terms of topics, in depth discussions will take place at the regular meetings on the following seven thematic areas listed in DPDHL’s Human Rights Policy Statement: child labour, diversity and Inclusion, working conditions, data privacy, forced labour, freedom of association and collective bargaining and environment.
The first OECD protocol between the parties was signed in 2016 and renewed in 2019.
UNI General Secretary Christy Hoffman, said:
“We welcome this new protocol which includes UNI and ITF in DPDHL’s due diligence processes and moves our cooperation forward from problem solving to prevention. Our previous agreements with DPDHL, which endorsed the right to freedom of association, strengthened union building worldwide, particularly in countries in Africa, where many new union members are now covered by a collective agreement. We hope that this latest protocol will lead to even better conditions for workers at DHL throughout its supply chain.”
ITF General Secretary, Stephen Cotton, said:
“We believe that workers deserve a life of respect, dignity and a fair share of the wealth that they create. The longstanding relationship between DPDHL and the ITF and UNI now steps into another phase where we must work together to bolster workers’ voices and meaningfully impact their jobs. The renewal of this partnership progresses the values of supply chains accountability, and we look forward to joining forces and continuing working together on solutions to issues and future challenges that the transport industry must tackle, like the decarbonisation of our global economy.”
“Thanks to the global protocol, we know that our demands reach the top-level of management and we are able to rectify the issues that workers face,” said a worker and union representative at DHL Guinea.
The parties have agreed to maintain their productive talks and will hold regular meetings at the working level three times a year. The General Secretaries of the ITF and UNI will continue to meet at least once a year with the Board Member for Human Resources at DPDHL Group to engage in dialogue regarding key topics as agreed.
