As the stoppage enters its third week, the parties are still far apart on key issues.
A strike by 55,000 union workers for Canada Post that began on Nov. 15 is headed into its third week. Canadians have not received mail delivered by the postal service since then.
Canada Post said on Dec. 5 that it would be reviewing a counterproposal from the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) made in response to an offer from the postal service the previous weekend. The response was delivered to Canada Post via mediator before he suspended his efforts as a result of the parties being too far apart to reach an agreement at the moment. The union says they’re prepared to return to active negotiations.
“Our counterproposals contain movement on both our demands and employer demands to help bring the parties closer to an agreement,” CUPW said in a statement on Dec. 5. “We all want CUPW members to get back on the job with their rights protected, health and safety issues resolved, wages that reflect inflation and security for the future in new collective agreements.”
Details of the Canada Post proposal and the union’s counteroffer were not made immediately available to the public.
“The framework includes proposals to bring greater flexibility to [Canada Post’s] delivery model while also demonstrating movement on other key issues,” Canada Post said regarding its most recent overture. “It is our hope that these proposals will reignite discussions and, together with the support of mediators, help the parties work toward final agreements.”
Among the issues the sides are disputing are wage increases, pensions, medical leave and weekend overtime pay – Canada Post has proposed using contractors, including for a possible seven-day delivery plan, as a cost-cutting measure.
Canada Post is facing significant financial headwinds; it reported losing $315 million before tax in Q3 of this year, a jump from its $290 million loss in the same quarter in 2023, and is on track to end 2024 in the red for the seventh consecutive year. It ended 2023 with a loss of nearly $750 million, up from $548 million at the end of 2022. The company cited a dramatic fall in physical mail since its peak year in 2006, when 5.5 billion letters were delivered, as well as competition from other parcel carriers for its financial difficulties.
This week, Canada Post began laying off some striking workers, a move it said was temporary but that the union deemed “an intimidation tactic” and in response, filed an unfair labour practice complaint with the Canada Industrial Relations Board.
The stoppage is impacting promo companies to varying degrees. Rob Foote, owner of Jay-Line (asi/63014) in St. Catharines, ON, said the cracks in Canada Post’s foundation have been obvious for a long time. His company no longer relies on the service as it once did.
“You could see this coming,” he said. “They’ve had too many employees, too much real estate and not enough business. We rely on couriers for delivery, we track our own shipping, and we use e-transfer for payment and email for all our art and print files. This strike will only help the mainstream couriers and private delivery companies grow and profit.”
Similarly, Christine Courtemanche, vice president of Linéaire Infographie inc. (asi/253727) in Laval, QC, has felt minimal impact from the strike. Her company has asked clients who pay by cheque to switch to e-transfer, which is preferable, and they don’t use Canada Post to deliver orders. “UPS and FedEx are a bit behind schedule, because they have a lot on their plate right now,” she said.
Other companies rely more heavily on the postal system. Mike Yager, president of Spotlight Sport & Corporate Wear (asi/332753), was expecting the strike to end after 10 days; it’s now gone on for more than 20. He’s hopeful there will be a resolution by Dec. 11 – two weeks before Christmas.
Significant impacts can now be felt, he said, with delays from other carriers who are now having to deliver more mail and parcels during the busiest time of the year.
“The courier warehouses and trucks are falling further behind each day the strike goes on,” said Yager.
“One FedEx courier said to us, ‘My truck is only so big, and I can only fit so many packages for my route each day.’ There are backlogs every year to work through, but we’re seeing those delays about two to three weeks earlier than normal this year. Our clients are very aware of the situation, so they know we’re doing the best we can.”
Compounding the challenges is Spotlight Sport & Corporate Wear’s location – it’s in Humboldt, SK, a small community in a rural area where many clients still pay by cheque. Anything mailed before Nov. 15 is still trapped in the system.
“Some customers aren’t willing to issue a ‘stop payment’ and pay with e-transfer or credit card, so we’ve been waiting for those,” Yager said. “We’ve been accepting many more payments via e-transfer, but that does add a step in our bookkeeping system.”
Most customers of Two Crazy Ladies (asi/347888), which has locations in Toronto and Victoria, BC, already pay by e-transfer, said Melanie Sibbitt, president and CEO. For those who still pay by cheque, the team has sent courier waybills to have them picked up. Fortunately, they ship no orders by Canada Post.
“I feel for people,” said Sibbitt, “especially seniors who aren’t tech-savvy and still do a lot by post.”