Heavy parcels: Government: Two delivery people are required for 23 kilo parcels

In the future, particularly heavy parcels will only be allowed to be transported by two delivery people. The Federal Cabinet in Berlin passed a corresponding legislative proposal, according to which one-person delivery is only permitted up to a weight limit of 23 kilos. In the range of 20 to 23 kilos, one-person transport is permitted, but suitable technical aid should be provided for this purpose.

Particularly in the run-up to Christmas, the volume of parcels and thus the physical strain on many thousands of delivery workers increases significantly, said State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Economics and Green Party leader Franziska Brantner. “With the proposed law that has now been passed, we are setting an example for protecting the health of employees in the parcel industry.”

Majority in the Bundestag questionable

However, the regulation still requires the approval of the Bundestag – whether the current red-green minority government will receive it is questionable. The FDP, the former coalition partner, announced that it would not agree to the change in the law. “There are definitely suitable technical aids that make one-person delivery possible, even for heavy packages, such as an electric hand truck for stairs,” said the economic policy spokesman for the FDP parliamentary group, Reinhard Houben.

The red-green federal government cannot expect the approval of the Union parliamentary group, as became clear from a statement by the parliamentary group’s deputy economic policy spokesman, Hansjörg Durz (CSU). He thinks the 23 kilo limit is good, especially since it corresponds to a Union demand. However, the CDU and CSU do not want to agree to this in this legislative period. Instead, Durz would like to reform the postal law, which includes the weight regulations for parcels, more comprehensively in the next legislative period and free it from unnecessary bureaucracy.

Verdi welcomed the federal government’s initiative. Delivering parcels is hard work, said Verdi deputy boss Andrea Kocsis. “Politicians are required to ensure that this does not come at the expense of the health of those who sort the packages and bring them to households and companies.” A real weight limit for parcels for one-person delivery is essential.

Different reactions from the parcel industry

The postal company DHL, which only transports relatively few particularly heavy parcels, also reacted positively, but also called for controls. “Compliance with the law by all market participants should be closely monitored by the supervisory authorities so that the law actually benefits all employees in the industry.”

However, the industry association BPEX, which represents DHL’s competitors, was critical. A requirement for two-person delivery of goods weighing 23 kilograms or more would lead to cost increases and impair the efficiency and speed of parcel logistics. The use of hand trucks and lifting aids has proven successful and such approaches can be further developed. The association emphasized that the health and safety of all employees is of central importance to the parcel services.