Coronavirus Covid-19: bpost takes steps to protect the health and safety of employees and the continuity of the universal postal service

Friday, March 13 2020 - In the exceptional circumstances that are now affecting the whole of Belgian society, bpost will remain close to citizens, continue to serve its customers and show the utmost concern for the health and safety of its employees.

Full conscious of the role it plays, bpost undertakes to fulfil its universal postal service missions and ensure the continuity of its activities.

 We also aim to create the best working conditions to protect the health and safety of all our members of staff.

So, in line with the measures implemented by the federal and federated authorities, this Friday bpost has taken a number of steps to be able to continue to provide the best possible service, while also protecting its employees and citizens.

Up to and including Friday 3 April 2020:

• Weekends, commencing Saturday 14 March 2020:

- Closure of all post offices on Saturdays.

- Post points and Kariboo! points will be open in line with the opening times of the shops in which they are located.

- Automatic parcel lockers will remain operational.

• From Monday to Friday, commencing Monday 16 March 2020:

 - Everything possible will be done to ensure the delivery of all products (newspapers, magazines, pensions, registered mail, parcels, letters).

 Several changes are planned for the delivery of pensions, registered mail and parcels:

1.  The post woman or man will remain at a distance of at least one meter from the customer.
2. The goal is to avoid physical contact wherever possible.
3. If a signature is required, the post woman or man will sign for delivery rather than the customer, although this will be done in the customer’s presence.

 - Post offices will be open. Post points and Kariboo! points will be open in line with the opening times of the shops in which they are located.

 - Automatic parcel lockers will remain operational.

Several additional measures to those already in force for several weeks were also adopted this Friday for employees to help contain the spread of the virus. These include:

- Reiteration of basic hygiene procedures: washing your hands regularly and meticulously, sneezing and coughing into a disposable handkerchief or your elbow, avoiding close contacts and calling a GP if you develop multiple symptoms.

- Setting up of teleworking facilities.

- Organisation of shared spaces on bpost sites to ensure a minimum distance between people of one metre (cafeterias, meeting rooms, workstations, etc)

Jean-Paul Van Avermaet, CEO bpost, says: “Thanks to the involvement of our thousands of employees, on our sites and on the streets, bpost is actively contributing to the collective and united efforts to stem the spread of coronavirus Covid-19. We continue to assess the situation from day to day so that we ensure we adapt our measures to reflect the reality on the ground and the recommendations of the authorities.”