UNITY ‑ Post offices in Unity, Wilkie and Kerrobert all say since the pandemic hit, their work has kept them even busier, and with holiday mailing already in progress, Canada Post has extended hours.
At the Unity location, hours will be extended from Dec. 6 to 23 and include office hours from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Thursday, Fridays open until 5 pm. along with Saturday opening from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Post office box holders received a card in their box advising them of the expanded hours.
Karen Fell, Unity’s postmaster, says they have never stopped being busy since the pandemic began and staff have noticed a significant increase of mail, coming and going, in the past three weeks. Staff are expecting traffic to increase as December nears.
Fell says they have three casual staff that are called in to help fill shifts during busier seasons like this, which greatly helps the current four employees in Unity.
Kerrobert and Wilkie post offices say they will operate Tuesdays and Thursdays until 7 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. They will call on a part-time employee to help with extra shifts. They too said that throughout the pandemic, business has remained busy and they have noticed it is also picking up now and will remain that way through the holidays.
Canada Post asks customers to plan ahead for sending holiday cards and packages. With the added complexity of potential travel issues due to flooding in British Columbia, mail going to and from this area could be affected.
Children can send their letters to Santa and they will do their best to get his letter back to them before Christmas. Posters are up at Canada Post locations outlining the address for letters to Santa.
Local mailing deadlines are Dec. 21 for regular mail however different dates are in place for express post and parcel mail outs. Customers are encouraged to go to canadapost.ca/mailingdates for specific deadlines for mail going within province, within Canada and internationally.
