Another Canada Post strikes causes serious concerns for community members

“Last time they went on strike, my TV got cut off. My telephone got cut off. I don’t have a cell phone, I don’t have a computer. I’m 68 years old, I’m just too old to play with these things,” he added.

Mitchell says he always pays his bills on time, but because he doesn’t have an email or cellphone, he relies on Canada Post to deliver his bills to him. And he says he’s not alone, adding he personally knows many other seniors like him who aren’t technologically savvy, but he feels that he and other seniors aren’t being considered.

“The days of the future are here, but don’t forget, these are the people that built Canada. These are the people that fought in the wars,” Mitchell said.

It’s not just seniors that are considered, as this puts small businesses at risk too.

“Last year, the strike for Canada Post cost small businesses over $1 billion in economic impact,” said the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) Director of Legislative Affairs Ryan Mitton.

Among the changes the federal government proposed were cancelling door-to-door mail delivery for just about every household in the country, changes Mitton believe are necessary. He adds labour protections need to be in place amid these changes, but the changes themselves are needed for the survival of both Canada Post and small businesses.

“We know that small businesses across B.C. overwhelmingly rely on Canada Post to do their business. And if they’re forced to shift away from Canada Post, they’re not going to be coming back,” Mitton said.

“We can’t afford any more bailouts of Canada Post. It does need to modernize. Small businesses need this carrier to be around well into the future,” he continued.

Local CUPW 812 workers say they definitely sympathize with anyone struggling amid the ongoing strikes, but add they’re not giving up the fight.

“We are in our community and we know that this service is important to them. And the fact that management at the very top in Ottawa and the federal government is completely disrespecting that is insulting to Canadians as well as us,” said CUPW 812 Local President Nicole Chouinard.

In earlier negotiations CUPW rejected an offer that would’ve given workers a 13% raise over four years, a deal Chouinard says still didn’t keep up with inflation and years of workers receiving no raises. However, amid these negotiations is the fact that Canada Post is losing $10 million a day, so how does this situation get reconciled with that huge deficit in mind? Whatever the solution is, Chouinard says it can’t come at the expense of workers.

“You’re hearing all of these doomsday phrases from them (the government), but they weren’t talking about that when we weren’t negotiating with them,” she said.

As of September 26, there is no word yet on when negotiations will resume.

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by Tommy Osborne

Another Canada Post strikes causes serious concerns for community members

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