The tension is mounting between Canada Post and the union representing Canadian postal workers, as contract negotiations fail. By the time you read this, there almost, undoubtedly, will either be a strike or lockout going on, along with a service disruption. This just had to happen the one time I decided to order a bunch of new clothes and books…just my luck.
At a glance, this situation is the culmination of failing contract negotiations between the Crown corporation and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW). Each side is accusing the other of not wanting to co-operate, and in the end, the people who are going to hurt the most are the ones who depend on both sides, Canada Post and the CUPW working together to provide a necessary service.
Members of the union want a number of things, like wages above inflation, the restoration of sick leave and 100 per cent pay for injury-on-duty. I’m not going to judge any of these demands, since I am not a postal worker. Canada Post, according to the CUPW, has responded in a way that was, apparently, less than satisfactory. CUPW members are alleging Canada Post can afford to dole out nicer, pricier contracts. Canada Post begs to differ. Back and forth, back and fourth…
This whole situation seems to chronicle the throes of another ailing Crown corporation — a page out of the same book in which the tales of BC Hydro or Via Rail are written. But, if this squabbling is allowed to spiral out of control, like it did before, in 2011, and several other times dating back to the ‘80s, we’re looking at one of the most important services available to us coming to a screeching halt, yet again.
I’m worried for folks here in Saskatchewan, in particular, if this situation isn’t resolved. A spokesperson for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) put it best, noting that rural areas—areas of which there are many here—are going to be hit hardest.
Why? Because in big population centres, there are alternatives, in the form of, say, private courier services. Remote Prairie villages and towns, which are, excuse the expression, in the middle of nowhere, cannot say the same. When you’re not near a big population centre, sometimes Canada Post is all you’ve got.
About the only things that will get delivered, in the event of a shutdown from a strike or lockout, according to members of the union, will be pension and social assistance cheques.
That’s not so bad if you are, like I am, just facing the inconvenience of new clothes and books you ordered online coming in late, but if you’re supposed to be delivering tax documentation to Revenue Canada, or are a business that needs affordable postage service to stay viable, you’re really out of luck. Small businesses will really take it on the chin, too. The CFIB states that 98 per cent of small business owners utilize Canada Post’s letter mail services, with almost half of those owners sending 50 or more pieces of mail a month.
Our federal government has its hands tied in this matter. The Liberal government has gone on the record to say it won’t intervene, and hasn’t said much else, referring any questions to the labour minister’s office, who has yet to say anything meaningful on the matter.
Even if the government wanted to step in, the approach that worked in 2011 for the Harper government isn’t going to work this time. Five years ago, the Harper government created back-to-work legislation, essentially passing a law that just told the union to…well, get back to work.
There was plenty of speculation on how great an idea that was. That back-to-work legislation, which has been used several times, in similar scenarios, since the ’80s, was deemed unconstitutional in an Ontario court, a couple of months ago. So, that’s out of the question today.
About the only thing the Liberal government can, or is willing to do now, it’s doing. It has appointed an independent panel to conduct a review of Canada Post. That sounds like a good way for some bureaucrats to stay busy and make some cash on the side, but what will we learn from this? Maybe which of the two arguing parties is holding out and making unreasonable demands of the other. It’s not much, and it will probably take a long time, but at the tail end of it, they’ll at least be a little bit closer to figuring out how to defuse the situation, and getting the mail moving again.
