Menu

canada post

Canada Post mail boxes Dec 2023

Postal union claims new deal is a step forward, encourages members to vote yes

The union representing Canada Post (CUPW) employees says two years of tough negotiations have led to tentative agreements that protect key provisions and deliver improvements for workers. 

The National Executive Board has voted to accept the deals for both postal bargaining units and is recommending members vote yes during ratification in the new year.

The agreements include higher wages with inflation protection, improved benefits without changes to premium cost-sharing, and retention of Article 53 job security in the Urban collective agreement. Other gains include limits on late start times for letter carriers, no dynamic routing, and no load leveling for either bargaining unit. The defined benefit pension plan remains unchanged, and 393 corporate retail counters are protected under Appendix I.

The union says the agreements also provide an extra year of stability, with both deals expiring January 31, 2029. 

Language around short-term disability and personal days will be finalized by mid-January, with ratification votes to follow. There will be no strike or lockout activity during the voting period.

Union leaders say the outcome reflects the strength and persistence of members in the face of significant challenges. 

A detailed summary of changes will be published soon, and voting details will be shared in the coming days.

Canada Post Office in Halifax

Canada Post’s transformation plan in government hands

Canada Post has submitted a transformation plan to the federal government laying out how the corporation will adapt.

The federal government removed barriers to reform and directed Canada Post to implement concrete changes that respond to the rapidly changing environment and avoid becoming a recurring burden to taxpayers.

The plan was submitted to Public Works Minister Joël Lightbound.

Some of the proposed changes include converting all households to community mailboxes, modernizing the network of post offices, amending service standards for letter mail and reducing overhead costs.

In a statement Monday, president and CEO Doug Ettinger said the plan responds to Canada Post’s challenges and modernizes the postal service to support the current economy while serving all Canadians.

“While our situation requires that we act with urgency, we will be thoughtful and respectful in our approach and responsive to feedback,” Ettinger said. “Canadians deserve a postal service that is strong, stable and focused on meeting their changing needs, and we are focused on delivering on that.”

According to a press release from Canada Post, its approach to transformation will be guided by a set of five principles: prioritizing service, proceeding thoughtfully, treating employees with respect, keeping Canadians informed and flexibility.

Canada Post will work with the federal government on the plan. It will be released to the public once it has been finalized.

Postal workers continue to engage in rotating strikes while trying to negotiate a new contract with Canada Post.

Canada Post mail boxes Dec 2023

Canada Post announces management layoffs

,

Canada Post has eliminated an unknown number of management positions as part of corporate-wide restructuring.

In a statement, president and CEO Doug Ettinger said Canadians have changed how they use the postal service, and Canada Post must adapt.

“We are embarking on a major transformation to strengthen the postal service and become more self-reliant and service-focused,” he said. “At the same time, we need to ensure our costs better align to our financial realities, which means our organization will be leaner at all levels going forward.”

A separate statement from Canada Post said as the corporation continues to implement measures announced by the federal government on Sept. 25, it will not share further details.

“We can confirm that the changes will align with the government’s expectation that leadership and structural change from within the corporation is essential,” the statement said.

The layoffs come at the same time postal workers are engaged in rotating strikes across the country.

Canada Post Office in Halifax

Canada Post says most workers returning but expect more delays

, , , ,

Some Canada Post workers have returned to the job, but more delays are possible due to rotating strikes, meaning workers in select location are on strike temporarily until the strike moves to another location.

The postal service is ramping up its operations after the national strike ended, but mail will not be delivered and packages will not be accepted in places affected by the rotating strike.

As of Tuesday, workers were on strike in:

  • Dawson Creek, B.C.
  • Fort St. John, B.C.
  • St. Anthony, N.L.

Another strike in Timmins, Ont., has ended, the release said.

Operations will resume as quickly as possible once the strike rotates to another location, but they cannot guarantee reliable service, so customers should expect delays with shipping.

Canada Post says they are still waiting for a response to their offer presented on Oct. 3.

They say the offer treats employees fairly and considers the financial needs of the corporation.

However, Juanita MacInnis, president of the Port Hawkesbury Local, told our newsroom that it isn’t entirely true the postal service sent another offer. She says they sent the same one already.

“They are lying. They left the table. You can’t negotiate if you left the table,” said MacInnis.

She added that she thinks Canada Post just expects the union to decline the offer.

Canada Post Strike Fort Frances Nov 2024 (6)

Canada Post workers switch to rotating strikes

, ,

Striking postal workers are going back to work.

Sort of.

The president of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers announced Thursday night that the nationwide strike action would end.

Jan Simpson said starting at 6 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 11, the union would switch to rotating strikes.

She said locals that will be rotating out will be informed closer to the time they’ll take action.

CUPW members have been off the job since Sept. 25. They walked out after the federal government announced reforms to Canada Post to stabilize the corporation’s finances.

Simpson said the union couldn’t stand by as the government authorized Canada Post to “gut our postal service and slash thousands of our jobs.”

She also said the Sept. 25 announcement let Canada Post make a mockery of the negotiating process.

Simpson said union leadership will meet with Minister Joël Lightbound next week. Lightbound is the minister responsible for Canada Post.

Canada Post mail boxes Dec 2023

Canada Post CEO supports government measures

, ,

Canada Post must adapt to a modern world, the corporation’s president and CEO said Wednesday.

In an open letter to Canadians, Doug Ettinger said he supports the measures announced last week by the federal government.

The letter comes in the middle of another strike by postal workers across the country.

Ettinger said a lot has changed in terms of how people use the postal service since it became a Crown corporation more than 40 years ago.

“Mail has been in decline since 2006,” he said. “Each year, Canada Post delivers fewer letters to a growing number of households. This means mail revenues are decreasing while costs are rising.”

Ettinger said when Canada Post loses money, it’s taxpayers who must pay the bill.

“A bill which currently amounts to about $1 billion a year,” he said. “That is not sustainable, nor is it necessary.”

Ettinger said there are practical changes that can be made to modernize the postal service and make it financially sustainable.

He listed switching from door-to-door delivery to the community mailbox model, updating the retail network, and reducing staff numbers as some of the ways Canada Post can reduce its costs.

“Canadians have been changing the way they use the postal service, and we must change with them,” he said.

He said management also remains committed to reaching negotiated agreements with striking postal workers.

“It’s vital these agreements reflect our financial reality and support the changes we need to make,” he said, adding they must help Canada Post reduce reliance on taxpayer funding.

Canada Post mail boxes Dec 2023

Labour heavyweights to attend rally with postal workers

, ,

A pair of Canadian labour leaders were scheduled to join striking Canada Post workers at an Ottawa rally Wednesday.

The Canadian Labour Congress announced executive vice-presidents Siobhán Vipond and Larry Rousseau would attend the rally on Parliament Hill as members of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) continue to strike.

“Postal services in Canada are under attack, and postal workers are bearing the brunt of decades of bad business decisions made by wealthy executives,” the CLC said in a statement.

The CLC described Canada Post as a public service, not a for-profit company.

“While executives collect massive bonuses, workers are being squeezed,” the statement said. “Our communities need reliable, door-to-door delivery that puts service before profit.”

CUPW members walked off the job on Sept. 25 after Public Works Minister Joel Lightbound announced Canada Post would be making changes to how mail is delivered in Canada.

Canada Post mail boxes Dec 2023

Canada Post presents counter-offers to CUPW

,

The ongoing dispute between Canada Post and the union representing postal workers took another step Thursday.

According to a press release from the Crown corporation, they have informed the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) that it would be responding to the union’s recent offers with new global offers designed to move negotiations forward.

The release said the goal of the offers is to allow the two sides to return to the table sometime in the next week.

Canada Post said CUPW’s offers from Aug. 20 added “significant new costs and restrictions at a challenging time for the corporation.”

Canada Post said it’s making the new offers after CUPW did not respond to their request to come back to the table with “workable solutions that reflect the company’s current realities and provide the basis for meaningful discussions.”

With a planned return to the table, Canada Post said it has asked the union to amend its strike action and end the flyer delivery ban announced on Sept. 12.

Canada Post mail boxes Dec 2023

CUPW accuses Canada Post of demanding concessions instead of bargaining

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) says Canada Post is refusing to negotiate in good faith as talks over new collective agreements continue.

In a statement released Thursday, CUPW said Canada Post has not moved from the “final offers” it issued in May, even after union members decisively rejected them. The union says its comprehensive counter-proposals, submitted on August 20, have not received a meaningful response.

Instead, CUPW says management is demanding concessions from workers, which the union argues would undermine jobs, rights, and the quality of public service. “Postal workers have been clear: we are not here to make concessions that erode jobs, rights, or the public service,” said national president Jan Simpson.

The union maintains that Canada Post must begin engaging seriously with its proposals if progress is to be made. “Negotiations require both parties at the table, not one side dictating terms and demanding that workers pay the price for management’s failures,” the statement said.

CUPW added that it remains committed to achieving negotiated collective agreements that respect workers and strengthen the postal service, but called on Canada Post to move away from issuing press releases and start genuine bargaining.

Canada Post mail boxes Dec 2023

Canada Post urges union to revise proposals as labour talks stall

,

Canada Post says it is still far from reaching a deal with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers after nearly two years of negotiations.

In a statement, the corporation said it received counter-offers from CUPW on August 20 in response to what it had called its “best and final” offer earlier this year. But after reviewing the proposals, the company said the union has either held firm or strengthened its positions on several issues, while also adding new demands.

Canada Post said the gap between the two sides remains “substantial,” and that some of CUPW’s proposals would raise operational costs at a time when the company is facing mounting financial losses. It noted that while the union included a part-time staffing component to address weekend delivery, the approach was described as unaffordable and complex to manage.

The statement urged CUPW to revisit its offers and bring forward proposals that reflect the “realities confronting the company.” Canada Post said both parties need to agree on a path that balances employee support with financial sustainability and addresses the challenges it presented to the federal Industrial Inquiry Commission.

Despite the stalemate, Canada Post said it remains committed to reaching new collective agreements through bargaining and will continue to provide updates to employees and customers.