The Canadian Union of Postal Workers launched an immediate nationwide strike Thursday after the federal government ordered Canada Post to begin a sweeping overhaul that could spell the end of traditional door-to-door delivery.
The union said the walkout was a direct response to Ottawa’s move, which it called an attack on workers and postal service.
“In response to the government’s attack on our postal service and workers, effective immediately, all CUPW members at Canada Post are on a nation-wide strike,” the union said.
The government said Canada Post is in “an existential crisis” after years of mounting losses and shrinking mail volumes. Since 2018 the corporation has lost more than $5 billion, including over $1 billion last year. Losses this year are expected to reach nearly $1.5 billion.
Letter mail has plunged from 5.5 billion pieces two decades ago to about two billion today, while the company’s share of the parcel market has fallen from 62 per cent in 2019 to less than 24 per cent, the government said.
Public Works Minister Joël Lightbound announced measures to cut costs and modernize operations, including lifting the moratorium on community mailbox conversions. The change would allow as many as four million addresses still receiving door-to-door service to be shifted to community boxes.
Other steps include ending a 1994 freeze on rural post office closures, altering delivery standards so non-urgent mail can travel by ground instead of air, and speeding up the process for stamp rate increases.
“The measures announced today will help place the corporation on a stronger financial footing and provide the flexibility it needs to adapt to a rapidly changing environment,” Lightbound said.
Picket lines are expected at post offices across the country, with mail and parcel service likely to be disrupted.
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