Contract talks continue as strikes looms for Canada Post workers

CITYnews halifax / By Afua Baah

Bargaining talks between Canada Post and its workers are nearly down to the wire as both sides try to avoid a strike that could have impacts right across the country.

“Many issues have been going on for many years in rounds of the bargaining, and we need to fix this current round,” said Jan Simpson, National President of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers.

As of Saturday, discussions were ongoing between Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers, which represents 55,000 members.

“We’re trying our best to negotiate two collective agreements, one for the urban operations and one for the rural and suburban mail carriers,” said Simpson.

Last month, the union announced that its members voted overwhelmingly to strike if a deal could not be reached at the bargaining table. Any potential labour disruptions could happen sometime next week. The cooling-off period for contract talks ends Saturday, meaning the union will have the legal right to strike starting Sunday. CUPW must provide 72 hours of advance notice if it decides to do so.

The union president said both sides still have key issues to iron out.

“Trying to bargain for fair wages, health and safety issues, retiring with dignity, as well as expense of the public post office,” said Simpson.

The latest offer from Canada Post included a 11.97 per cent wage bump over four years. The union said the latest offer is still filled with rollbacks. Canada Post tells CityNews “our focus at this critical time is on negotiating new collective agreements. Both parties remain at the table. We are operating as normal.”

The crown corporation also said it is facing a challenging financial situation. In the first six months of 2024, Canada Post recorded a loss from operations of $490 million. Since 2018, Canada Post has lost more than $3 billion.

“We have a part of the bargaining that talks about expansion of services at the post office and that will help them bring in revenue to get rid of some of the debt that they think they have,” said Simpson.

If a strike were to happen, experts said there are some communities that could begin to feel the impact more quickly than others.

“Older Canadians rely on the post more than younger and urban Canadians rely less on than rural. So there are geographic, and I think demographic differences that do put the impact of a potential work stoppage into focus,” said Rafael Gomez, director of the Centre for Industrial Relations and Human Resources at the University of Toronto.

CityNews reached out to other parcel delivery companies, including FedEx, Purolator and UPS.

FedEx said: “Anticipating that the circumstances at Canada Post may trigger an increase in demand for FedEx services, FedEx has put in place a comprehensive contingency plan to maintain the excellent service our customers have come to expect from us every day.”

Purolator and UPS did not respond to a request for comment.

If businesses feel they have no other choice than to reach out to another parcel company, that could mean another financial hit for Canada Post.

“There is a potential for clientele loss as a result of any work stoppage, especially if it’s prolonged,” said Gomez.

Any impact on holiday packages could be weeks away, and experts say that could also put the union in a tough bargaining position.

“The leverage doesn’t work in favour of the union until we get into December, and by then you’ve already been on strike a month and therefore the gains you’d have to make at the bargaining table would have to be that much greater. So it’s a tricky position both Canada Post is in and the union,” Gomez added.

It is unclear if Ottawa would step in if a strike were to happen.