As the possibility of a strike looms, Canada Post unionized workers gather.

In response to the impending strike between the Crown business and its unionized employees, Canada Post employees demonstrated at many locations nationwide on Thursday. Contract negotiations between Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) have been going on for about a year. And those discussions go on. Workers last month unanimously approved of going on strike if a solution could not be reached at the negotiating table.

Approximately 95.8% of urban workers and 95.5% of rural workers supported the strike mandate, according to data released by the union.

 The minimum 72-hour notice required to initiate a labor dispute has not yet been given by Canada Post or the union.

“Equal pay and secure working conditions”

CUPW said in a news release announcing the rallies that it has been negotiating with Canada Post for “safe working conditions, fair wages, the right for all workers to retire with dignity, and the expansion of public postal services for all communities. “The ambition to transition to seven-day-a-week parcel service seems to be a major bone of contention in the negotiations, as Canada Post emphasized in an email on Thursday. 

According to the Crown corporation on Monday, Canada Post’s revenue has been quickly eroded by the mere possibility of a strike. Concerned that a service outage would delay the arrival of holiday presents, customers are switching delivery firms, it continued.

Prof. claims that core business is “dissolving.”

In the meantime, Ian Lee, a professor of business at Carleton University, stated that Canada Post’s main goods are “literally dissolving underneath [its] feet.” There isn’t enough business to sustain the existing number of mail carriers, according to Lee, who has written a lot about Canada Post. “The revenues are declining year after year after year,” stated he. “They are in a pretty bad situation. But it keeps getting worse.

When the firm warns of the financial consequences, Canada Post employees provide a 72-hour notice to go on strike.

The union that represents Canada Post employees announced that it will go on strike legally on Friday. The Crown company has warned that a possible strike will worsen its already terrible financial situation. Following a legally required cooling-off period, CUPW was in a legitimate striking position as of November 3. 

The union claims that over 95% of workers in both urban and rural areas supported a strike mandate in a referendum last month. The executive board of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) said early Tuesday that it was providing its rural and urban mail carrier negotiating units with the necessary 72-hour notice.

$3 billion in losses since 2018.

According to recent announcements about the strike, Canada Post is at a “critical juncture” and its “deteriorating financial situation could require the company to revisit its proposals.” The Crown corporation has stated that it wishes to negotiate “a more flexible and affordable delivery model” that would include parcel delivery seven days a week, and it recently proposed yearly wage hikes totaling 11.5% over four years. 

748 million was lost before taxes in 2023 as a result of decreased transaction mail volumes, increased delivery expenses, and competition from a post-pandemic spike in parcel delivery services.

Weekend deadlock and disability plan

One of the points of contention during discussions has been Canada Post’s request to extend parcel delivery service to weekends and evenings. According to the union, it wants to ensure that the company’s plans for flexible delivery won’t affect the usual, full-time weekday routes that its employees travel.

According to CUPW, Canada Post has shown no interest in enhancing its short-term disability plan. The union requests that its collective agreement include seven personal and ten medical days. Some companies that depend on Canada Post for product shipping are preparing for the effects: According to one Toronto store owner, a strike might cost his establishment $60,000 monthly.