A week has passed since Canada Post workers have gone on strike, and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers outline how this can impact residents in rural Alberta, while giving thanks for their continued support.
CUPW president for Calgary local 710, Wycliffe Odour, explained that the group had to make the unfortunate decision following the failure of Canada Post to meet their needs.
“The one thing that we really cherish the most is providing a service to Canadians across the country,” he said. “And that was because Canada Post was not coming up with realistic offers for our demands, which address service expansion and service delivery.”
For the foreseeable future, Ofour said there will be nothing going through Canada Post.
“That means that there will be no deliveries of any kind through us, and that’s going to have a huge impact on our small business and our own members of the public,” he explained.
Although delivery services came to a halt, Odour said that postal workers offered to deliver Social Security cheques to those who need them on Nov. 21 and 22.
“We did offer for free to go out there and deliver those cheques to the members of the public, so our own members are out there delivering them right now,” he said.
A major unresolved issue for the more than 55,000 postal workers in Canada includes the need for wage increases, in line with inflation.
“We extended our contract for another two years, and the cost-of-living allowance was triggered,” Odour said. “That was never rolled into our basic wage grid.”
He adds that they are also asking for an increase of payments for the short-term disability program from 70 to 80 per cent.
“When our members are injured at work and they are not able to come into work, they get paid almost 70 per cent of their wages,” he explained. “We are asking them to 88 per cent.”
The workers are also asking for Canada post to provide members with 10 medical days, which he adds is required by code for all federal employees.
“Canada Post has denied to provide us with those 10 medical days, and we are also asking for a significant group benefit plan because they are not addressing the needs our members,” Odour said.
Finally, postal workers are asking for protection against technological change, improved protection against harassment, and they are asking Canada pos to not contract out work that can be done by their own members.
In terms of actual discussions, Odour said they’ve been seeing to improve their service and adding weekend deliveries, while not taking anything out from their current membership.
With around 100 sitting with Canada Post and only two offers, Odour said it all led to this decision.
“It’s just unfortunate,” he said. “Canada Post, for some reason, they were not negotiating in good faith. And so, this is providing some pressure on Canada Post to come to the table and negotiate with the committee.”
Odour said that rural communities have shown the greatest support in their endeavours, which he believes is very critical in times like this.
“You hear many people compare Canada Post to the Amazon of today, but we are the last mile when it comes to delivering your parcels or mail, because most companies do not want incur cost in delivering to rural areas,” he explained. “They want to focus more on the urban areas, but it’s the support that we get from small urban areas like Cochrane.”
With rural Albertans as the core support for postal workers, he said that anyone who is interested in supporting their cause can do so by contacting their local MP to help persuade Canada Post to come to the bargaining table.
“Our members are saying if Canada Post can come up with a reasonable offer, we will be back tomorrow,” he said. “That’s all they need to do.”
Odour said that since 2022, Canada Post planned to invest $5 billion to invest in infrastructure. He believes that it should also be important for them to invest in the people who work behind the scenes.
Looking to the future, he hopes that Canada Post will come to the bargaining table, with the intent to negotiate in good faith.
“Hopefully this will end sooner than later, and we’ve been with a mediator that was appointed,” he said. “We’re looking forward to a negotiated contract, so that we can start delivering sooner than later.”
Odour and members of CUPW would like to say thank you for the continued support from the public.
“Some have dropped off and brought us coffee and all that, but more importantly, we look forward to going back to our normal duties,” he said. “We do not just deliver a parcel; we also deliver the emotions that are contained in that parcels to the public.
“And that is what our members, who are trusted in those communities, look forward to do. And so, we can’t wait for this to be resolved so that we can be back on those streets and communities.
