Union says Canada Post has declined its request for two-week extension

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) said Canada Post has refused its request for a two-week truce so the union can review the offers it provided and continue negotiations without a labour disruption.

Canada Post presented new global offers to CUPW in a bid to reach new collective agreements and maintain service.

The offers, made May 21, cover both Urban and Rural and Suburban Mail Carrier (RSMC) bargaining units. Canada Post said they include increased wage proposals, protection of existing employee benefits and changes to the delivery model aimed at addressing the Crown corporation’s mounting financial losses.

“Canada Post has proposed important changes to its delivery model to increase its flexibility and help address the Corporation’s significant financial and operational challenges,” the company said in a release.

CUPW, however, said Canada Post is seeking to change some hard-fought collective agreement rights and methods.

According to CUPW, the offers break down as follows:

• Wages: A wage increase of 13 per cent over four years. This is short of CUPW’s last demand for a 19 per cent increase to members’ base wages to keep pace with the rising costs of living.
• Cost of living allowance: The 13.59 per cent trigger threshold is far too high and means it will likely never be paid out. The offered six per cent wage increase should be seen as back pay to make up for the high inflation from the previous periods because the COLA payments in 2022-2023 were not sufficient and are not part of the base salary.
• Part-time parcel delivery: For Urban members, instead of using regular full-time workers and existing collective agreement provisions for seven-day delivery, Canada Post wants to introduce approximately 20 per cent more part-time positions than the 10 per cent that exists today. Some “flex” part time would be forced to stay up to 30 hours per week.
• Dynamic routing: Canada Post also wants to introduce dynamic routing in a limited number of locations without proper agreement on the rules governing such a system. Although Canada Post is stating that the routes will be route measurement system compliant, they are unable to demonstrate this to the union and admit they do not have the software to do this or the technical ability to enact this process.
• Load levelling: For both RSMC and Urban members, Canada Post wants to introduce load levelling – all routes are designed with a sophisticated process that utilizes agreed upon time values and restructure processes- instead of fixing the issues with the current system, Canada Post wants to transfer volumes of mail and points of calls to other workers during scheduled hours with no additional compensation. This is to be done on an ad hoc basis each morning by supervisors who may have limited knowledge of the route measurement systems.
• Two-tier benefits qualification: Canada Post wants to create a second class of benefits qualification requirements for new hires by delaying health and pension benefits until six months of consecutive regular employment.
• Personal days that already exist under the law: The additional six personal days are part of the Canada Labour Code, writing them into the collective agreements is helpful, but is window dressing.
• Canada Post is taking away the five-minute wash-up time.

Canada Post said the new offers reflect recommendations from the Industrial Inquiry Commission (IIC), which presented its final report on May 15. The commission was established by the federal government to assess the impasse after the union launched a national strike in November 2024. Operations resumed in December after the Canada Industrial Relations Board ordered workers back and extended the contracts to May 22.