A recent survey conducted among adult members of the Angus Reid Forum reveals that a significant majority of Canadians prefer Canada Post to remain publicly owned. An online survey we fielded earlier this month shows a pretty awesome data point. In fact, sixty-four percent of survey respondents agree that Canada Post should stay public. Each time we hear this sentiment, we see a fierce dogma against privatization of this kind. Indeed, 47 percent of survey respondents were against any level of the postal service being privatized.
While Canadians are fiercely protective of public ownership, they were open to big reforms for Canada Post. The survey’s thousands of written comments capture this tension in their perspectives. As an example, a surprising 72 percent of survey respondents indicated they would support cutting mail delivery down to three days a week. This is a continuation of the popular view that Canada Post needs to change. It needs to adapt to changing consumer habits and the current rate of inflation.
The survey also showed that a solid majority of Canadians—52 percent—support Canada Post hiring gig workers not in the union to do deliveries. They think this decision will increase overall cost-effectiveness and deliver a higher quality of service. Canadians are very welcoming to gig workers. They’re looking for the sort of cutting edge, tech-driven solutions that generate greater operational efficiency while staying true to the ideals of public service.
Taken together, these survey results highlight a complicated but intimate relationship between Canadians and their postal service. Definitely a clear majority supports this model of public ownership. They too recognize that for real change to happen in Canada Post’s operations, we need transformative changes. Canadians like to protect the integrity of public service. Simultaneously, they are strongly interested in adopting more innovative practices that can make this mode more efficient.
