An existential crisis has gripped Canada Post, where in-house experts have recently sounded the alarm that the crown corporation is, in fact, technically insolvent. In light of this massive financial shortfall, Canada Post has announced that they have temporarily suspended bargaining with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW). The U.S. To meet this challenge, it is looking at unprecedented changes in how it provides mail delivery service.
Canada Post has historically operated in a financially sustainable manner by using low-cost urban and suburban mail delivery to subsidize the high-cost delivery services to rural, remote, and Indigenous communities. A new 162-page report takes an even bolder stand. Specifically, it calls for phasing out daily door-to-door letter mail delivery to individual residential addresses while maintaining daily service for business addresses. This transformative change aims to address the organization’s dire fiscal crisis. Our new proposals for CUPW will be in the spirit of this reality.
Doug Ettinger, President and CEO of Canada Post, stated, “We will work with our bargaining agents and our shareholder, the Government of Canada, to address our challenges and secure a sustainable path forward.” This huge commitment highlights, more than ever, the need for solutions with growing fiscal constraints.
Even though negotiations have reached an impasse, CUPW is still fighting hard to maintain the status quo. The union was able to meet with Patty Hajdu, the recently sworn-in minister of jobs and families. They were further accompanied by John Zerucelli, secretary of state for labour. These roundtable discussions were meant to focus on questions that have been raised about many of the recommendations outlined in the report. CUPW expressed its reservations about the proposed changes, arguing they could lead to service cuts and major rollbacks to existing collective agreements.
CUPW spokespersons underscored their disagreement with the very notion of a negotiated process, stressing that they could not stay quiet on the issue. “We have objected to the entire process, but we felt that we had to participate in order to give voice to postal workers,” they stated. Furthermore, they criticized the report’s implications by stating that its recommendations “amount to service cuts, contracting out and major rollbacks to important provisions in our existing collective agreements.”
Bargaining has reached an impasse between Canada Post and CUPW. These fundamental disagreements have prevented both parties from ever being close to supporting each other. As the report’s author William Kaplan explained, CUPW’s refusal to allow innovation and cling to the status quo has created a stalemate. “Bargaining largely failed because one party – CUPW – is defending business as usual,” Kaplan said. He suggested that change is necessary for meaningful progress, implying that the union may need to reconsider its position: “In essence, his report is saying, ‘Hey union, you’ve got to change your tune.’”
Minister Hajdu appeared to counter concerns from both the union and passenger sides on where negotiations might go. “This report offers thoughtful suggestions on how to continue good-faith negotiations,” she stated. She urged all parties involved to set aside differences and focus on shared goals: “It’s time for everyone to put aside their differences, focus on shared goals, and ensure a strong postal system now and into the future.”
As Canada Post continues in its path of deep budget cuts, Kaplan stressed the importance of good jobs at Canada Post. He stated that part-time work “should not be gigified jobs, but good jobs, attractive jobs,” suggesting that job security and worker satisfaction should remain a priority.
In the eyes of industry watchers, it remains unclear whether CUPW can shift gears enough to win in this new arena. Marvin Ryder, a business professor at McMaster University, called the union’s stance “crazy.” “If I was the union, I’m going to be very, very disappointed in this,” he remarked. Ryder goes further in showing his skepticism regarding CUPW’s negotiating skills. This skepticism comes from the new financial crisis that Canada Post is now experiencing.
