Explainer: Millions of Canadians without mail service as Canada Post strike continues into second week
More than 55,000 Canada Post workers initiated the strike after a year of negotiations
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) announced the postal workers would begin a “last resort” strike on Nov. 15 after a year of bargaining and negotiations without success. No new items will be accepted or delivered during the strike, with the exception of government cheques.
Canada Post is the only mail or delivery service that delivers to every Canadian address, including remote locations that heavily rely on the national postal service. In a press release, a CUPW spokesperson wrote Canada Post had the opportunity to prevent the strike, but failed to do so.
“[Canada Post] has refused to negotiate real solutions to the issues postal workers face every day. Instead, Canada Post left us no choice when it threatened to change our working conditions and leave our members exposed to layoffs,” a union spokesperson wrote.
Postal workers are asking for a wage increase of 24 per cent over four years to reflect their work through the pandemic. Canada Post has proposed an increase of 11.5 per cent over the same time period.
Workers are also asking for safer working conditions at the Albert Jackson processing centre in Scarborough, Ont.,“the right to retire with dignity,” and expansion of services such as by investing in postal banking and senior-check-in services, which postal services in other countries have done, a CUPW spokesperson wrote in a release.
Collective agreement discussions with a special government mediator were not closer to being resolved at the end of the first week on Friday. Global News reported Saturday that Canada Post will not be able to meet the union’s demands if it wants to grow the company. The corporation has reported it is on track to finish a seventh year in a row at a loss, citing saturated competition as a key factor.
Responding to the report, a CUPW spokesperson wrote in a release on Friday that reported losses don’t tell the whole story, adding that Canada Post has spent millions on growing its parcel service, yet labour costs have decreased in the past few years.
“For many years, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers has urged Canada Post to take the Union’s proposals to expand services at the post office seriously,” the release reads.
“Canada Post could recover from the financial situation it finds itself in by investing in new revenue-generating services like postal banking and senior-check-in services as other postal services across the world have already done.”
Canada Post and CUPW have begun negotiations for a second week. Until an agreement is made, millions of Canadian residents should expect major disruptions to mail service.
