Just one day after meeting with the federal minister responsible for Canada Post, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) announced it will move from a nation-wide postal strike to rotating walkouts beginning Saturday, Oct. 11, at 6 a.m. local time.
CUPW National President Jan Simpson confirmed the shift in an Oct. 9 statement, noting that locals would be notified in advance when their rotating actions will take place. While the move is expected to restart some mail and parcel movement, Simpson said the union remains committed to securing “good collective agreements and a strong public postal service.”
The announcement followed an Oct. 8 meeting between CUPW’s National Executive Board and Negotiating Committees and Public Works Minister Joël Lightbound, who oversees Canada Post. The meeting, which lasted just over an hour, was requested by the union after the minister’s Sept. 25 announcement outlining proposed service reductions and delivery frequency changes.
In a statement summarizing the discussion, Simpson said union leaders “spoke to Minister Lightbound about a number of issues regarding his recent announcement and its impact on negotiations with Canada Post.” She added that the government’s plan “would mean cutbacks that threaten the frequency of delivery and delivery standards” at a time when the Crown corporation is reporting “$376 million in new revenue from the long-awaited postage increase this year.”
CUPW also presented concerns that Canada Post has been “omitting” key facts from its public narrative. “Although there are fewer people to supervise, Canada Post is spending more money on supervisors,” Simpson said, noting that “hundreds of supervisor positions have been added over the last five years while cutting CUPW maintenance, sorting, and delivery positions.”
The union further accused management of using its Purolator subsidiary “to run Canada Post into the ground,” alleging the company was diverting work in violation of new anti-scab laws. “By sending product to its subsidiary while postal workers are in a legal strike position, Canada Post is doing an end run around the law,” Simpson said.
According to the union, the minister and his staff “appeared to be interested” and committed to follow up within days. However, Simpson said CUPW was disappointed that the minister “refused to rescind his planned service cuts,” and reiterated that “a full public mandate review is overdue and required to make changes to Canada Post’s mandate.”
In her Oct. 9 statement announcing the rotating strikes, Simpson again emphasized that the dispute can only end “if Canada Post offers postal workers ratifiable collective agreements.” She added that “the government’s interventions have only emboldened the employer and undermined free and fair collective bargaining.”
CUPW thanked its members, the public, and opposition parties—particularly the New Democratic Party and Bloc Québécois—for their continued support and pledged to continue the fight for “strong public services, good jobs, and a sustainable public post office for all Canadians.”
As of press time, Canada Post had not responded publicly to CUPW’s announcement regarding the shift to rotating strikes.