Commonwealth_ Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) will meet at the negotiating table on Friday in an attempt to resume negotiations in their protracted labour dispute. Federal mediators will be present at the meeting, which both sides have agreed to. The move comes after more than two-thirds of urban and rural carriers rejected Canada Post’s “best and final offers” in a two-week vote overseen by the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB). Results of that vote came out on August 1, effectively sending both sides back to the bargaining table after a several-month standoff.
CUPW has been demanding the resumption of negotiations since the vote, stating that its members are seeking deals that protect their fundamental issues. The union has denounced Canada Post and the federal government for delaying, citing the long voting process and a failed prior attempt at arbitration.
At the same time, postal workers have kept an overtime ban from May. The move has been one of the most militant of the union’s bargaining strategies to negotiate improved contract terms, most notably on job protection, wages, and deploying part-time employees. Canada Post’s recent proposal, tabled in May, was pay increases of approximately 13 percent over four years. The plan also encompassed restructuring that would see more part-time employees, a point of contention for CUPW. The union has consistently opposed increased use of part-time or contracted staff, arguing the corporation could achieve savings in other ways rather than reducing the number of full-time positions.
For Canada Post, the proposed reforms form part of an imperative process of modernization in response to the financial and operational pressure facing the organization. Volumes of letter mail have been declining for decades, and competition in the parcel delivery business has mounted. The corporation has signaled that its operating model is under increasing pressure and that it must usher in reforms as quickly as possible to ensure its survival.
Commissioner William Kaplan‘s Industrial Inquiry Commission report earlier this year echoes these findings. That report concluded that Canada Post was effectively bankrupt and required revolutionary changes to its operations and management to be able to continue as a national institution.
There have been discussions on a new collective bargaining pact for more than 18 months. The federal government stepped in late last year to prevent a potential postal strike during the peak holiday season, requesting the CIRB intervene and monitor the dispute. No deal has been reached, however, even after the strike was prevented, and tensions between the two parties have continued.
The journey to the negotiating table this week is the latest chapter in a many-year saga that has seen successive efforts at resolving the issue fall through. Federal mediators are still taking part, the aim being to facilitate an agreement both sides can accept. The government has indicated that while it will not dictate the terms of the settlement, it does anticipate Canada Post and CUPW working out an end to the dispute without delay.
For Canada Post, the stakes are not only labour peace but also the long-term sustainability of its business. The corporation continues to grapple with declining traditional mail revenues, rising operating costs, and intensifying competition from private parcel delivery businesses.
For CUPW and its members, the outcome of these talks will determine the future conditions of work, compensation, and security for thousands of postal employees across the country. The union has insisted that any settlement achieve these core issues to be on the table.
With Friday’s meeting drawing near, both parties are under pressure to solve the impasse. Although the way to reaching a final deal is still unclear, the revived negotiations provide another chance to settle one of the longest-running labour issues in the federal workforce.
