The Romanian Post’s management team drops severance packages. Director could be fired

The Romanian Post’s board of directors gave up their severance packages, at the request of the Minister for Information society, writes zf.ro.

“I appreciate the management team’s decision. It reflects a commitment to the company’s strategic objectives”, minister Razvan Cotovelea said on Monday.

MSI requested on Monday that the company’s administration board take act of the managers’ decision and make it official.

“I especially appreciate the support we got from the team. This decision is unique in the recent history of a national society and it’s clear evidence of the employees’ solidarity and respect. Also, it is convergent with principles such as social dialogue, constructive consulting and respect towards the other employees. (…) Our objective is to successfully privatize the Post. It will be a difficult process, but it cannot be completed until the General Shareholders, the management team, the unions and all the employees come together for a single vision and a single course of action”, the minister said on Monday.

At the end of last week, the ministry requested the PM’s Control Group to check the legal basis for Madalina Alexe, former legal dirctor for the Romanian Post, to receive 30 compensation salaries, representing a total sum of EUR 60,000. The Post’s general director, Ion Smeeianu, signed the resignation decision for Madalina Alexe Rosita on Wednesday. According to one of the clauses in the contract, Alexe would receive 30 salaries in severance as a result.

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MSI holds 75 percent of Romanian post shares.

Ion Smeeianu, on his way out?

Razvan Cotovelea said on Tuesday that the “Rosita-Smeeianu” soap-opera is unfolding outside of the Government’s normal activity and the authorities will take all the necessary steps to recuperate money paid as compensation, including possibly firing Ion Smeeianu.

“We’re trying to do things legally, which means a work relationship between a national company, which is financially tired, and its management. (…) A director that is on his way out must not under any circumstances receive severance. We feel we are being taken advantage of and we will take this to court using all the legal devices we can to recuperate this money. (…) Ion Smeeianu knew of the severance clause, negotiated and signed that contract, we are currently looking for solutions and one of them could be removing Smeeianu from the Post’s management”, according to Cotovelea.

Employee wages to go up, is possible

Razvan Cotovelea said on Tuesday that his team is trying to obtain a salary increase of RON 80 – 120 for the Romanian Post’s employees. However, the minister specified that an analysis must be made in collaboration with the unions since there is no feasible way to increase wages for all 27,000 employees.

“The effort of letting 4,500 employees go last year along with the natural progression of people leaving the company have yielded an operational profit for the Romanian posts. Now if we come in and raise salaries for 27,000 people without taking care of the company’s health, we can take it straight to insolvency”, the minister said.