Deutsche Bundespost
 | |
Romanized name | German Federal Post Office |
|---|---|
Formerly called | Deutsche Post (1947-50) |
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| Industry | |
| Successors | |
| Founded |
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| Defunct | January 1, 1995 (privatized) |
| Headquarters | Bonn, Germany |
Number of employees | ~544,000 (1985) |
| Parent | Bundesnetzagentur (Federal Network Agency) |
| Website |
www |
The Deutsche Bundespost (German federal post office) was a state run business founded in 1950. It was initially the second largest federal employer during its time. After staff reductions in the 1980s, the staff was reduced to roughly 543,200 employees in 1985. The corporation was dissolved in 1995 under the first and second postal reforms that took place in the German Post Office.[1][2] Following the reforms, the former Deutsche Bundespost was broken into three public corporations: Deutsche Post AG (German Post), Deutsche Telekom (German Telecom, known internationally as T-Mobile), and Deutsche Postbank AG (German Post Bank).[3]
History
It was created in 1947 in the Trizone as a successor to the Reichspost (German imperial post office). Between 1947 and 1950 the enterprise was called Deutsche Post (German post office). Until 1989 the Deutsche Bundespost was a state-owned operation.
Organization
The Bundespost was developed according to a three-tier principle common in public administration in the Federal Republic of Germany. The upper stage consisted of the federal ministry for the post office and telecommunication system. The middle stage consisted of regional directorates (Bundespostdirektionen) and the state post office management (Landespostdirektion) under western Allied authority in West Berlin (see Deutsche Post Berlin (Deutsche Bundespost Berlin)) as of 1949/1955). The post office technical central office, telecommunication engineering central office, postal administration social office, and post offices) were on an equal level with the directorates. The lower stage consisted of post office branches, postal giro (akin to a checking account) savings bank offices and telecommunications office branches.
Legal basis
The legal basis for the administrative activity of the Bundespost was the postal administration act (Postverwaltungsgesetz, abbreviated PostVwG). A central goal of public administrative policy after 1924 was financial self-sufficiency. Political goals, however, often superseded this goal. According to the PostVwG, the federal postal system was to be administered "according to the principles of the policy of the FRG, in particular trade, economic, financial and social policies" and "the interests of the German national economy."
The Deutsche Bundespost was the largest employer in the Federal Republic. In 1985 it employed 543,200 people.
Reforms
In the first post office reform (July 1, 1989), the Bundespost was divided into three divisions (also called public enterprises):[3]
- Deutsche Bundespost Postdienst - postal service
- Deutsche Bundespost Telekom - communications service
- Deutsche Bundespost Postbank - postal bank
The central authorities remained as described above. The divisions were privatized in the second post office reform (January 1, 1995), resulting in:[2][3][4]
- Deutsche Post AG from the postal service
- Deutsche Telekom AG from the communications service
- Deutsche Postbank AG from the postal bank
The federal ministry for post office and telecommunications (Bundesministerium für Post und Telekommunikation) retained oversight responsibility for postal services and telecommunications. After the dissolution of that ministry on 1 January 1998, those tasks were taken over by a new federal network regulatory agency (Bundesnetzagentur, formerly RegTP) under the federal ministry for economics and technology. Other functions (such as the issuance of postage stamps) were taken over by the federal ministry of finance. Some telecommunications functions (including BOS radio) were turned over to the federal ministry of the interior.
For certain official and legal purposes (including certain financial, medical and other services for former postal civil servants), a "federal institution for post and telecommunication" (Bundesanstalt für Post und Telekommunikation) was created.
See also
References
- ↑ http://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/postumwg/index.html
- 1 2 http://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/gg/art_143b.html
- 1 2 3 http://daniel.rehbein.net, Daniel A. Rehbein,. "Die Deutsche Bundespost". www.bundespost.de (in German). Retrieved 25 May 2016.
- ↑ "Deutsche Telekom: Telecommunication milestones". www.telekom.com.