Minister Paatero resigns in wake of postal strike
Published : 29 Nov 2019, 18:29
Updated : 30 Nov 2019, 08:44
Minister of Local Government and Ownership Steering Sirpa Paatero has resigned in the wake of a two-week postal strike, Prime Minister Antti Rinne announced on Friday.
The minister is currently on sick leave.
Talking to the media at noon, Rinne said he has accepted the resignation of Sirpa Paatero, reported news agency Xinhua.
He said Paatero had not efficiently communicated the government views on labor relations with the postal and logistic services operator of the country Posti.
A two-week postal strike ended on Wednesday, as the Finnish Post and Logistics Union (PAU) and the employer's organization Palta reached an agreement at the national labor conciliator's office.
Under the deal, 700 parcel sorters whose terms of work had been worsened in September will return to their previous contractual situation.
The postal strike began on Nov. 11, with more than 9,000 workers involved, as Posti decided in September to cut the salaries of some 700 postal workers by 30 percent.
Paatero, a member of the Suomen sosialidemokraattinen puolue (Social Democratic Party of Finland-SDP), is viewed as a close ally of Rinne, who has been the leader of the party since 2014.