B.C. postal workers are hoping a meeting with the Minister in charge of Canada Post will lead to a resolution in the strike that is now dragging into a third week.
Operations were suspended across the country after workers walked off the job Sept. 25, following an announcement by Prime Minister Mark Carney that the federal Crown corporation would have to be transformed to remain viable.
The government wants to phase out of door-to-door delivery over the next nine years in favour of community mailboxes, and close some rural post offices.
And despite new offers put on the table by Canada Post Friday, Oct. 3, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers have remained on the picket lines after rejecting the deal.
“Right now one of the main issues we are worried about is the cancellation of the Rural Moratorium, which will see nearly 500 post offices close in rural and Indigenous communities. This is not only an attack on workers but an attack on vulnerable Canadian citizens,” said Royal City local 740 CUPW president Brooke Backus.
Backus noted members of the union’s national executive board and negotiating committees were meeting with Joel Lightbound, minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement, Wednesday evening, Oct. 8. He is responsible for Canada Post.
In a letter, CUPW first national vice-president Rona Eckert said they are planning to demand the minister publicly rescind the changes he announced on Sept. 25, while focusing on the latest contract offers by Canada Post.
This is the first in-person meeting they have had with the minister, said Eckert.
Eckert said while they want to meet with the minister, their position has not changed.
"The government’s decision to announce its plans to gut the public post office and slash thousands of good jobs is the wrong approach and will make everything worse for Canadians, the public service, and bargaining," she said, noting the Sept. 25 announcement was made just a day before Canada Post was supposed to present new global offers.
It was not an effective way to advance negotiations or find labour peace, said Eckert.
They will also be raising their concerns about the CEO and board of Canada Post, whom they accuse of mismanaging the corporation for years, in addition to the conflict of interest they say Purolator brings to the table, as Canada Post owns 91 per cent of the shipping provider, and the movement of their work, including struck work, to other employees under the Canada Post umbrella.
Canada Post said they remain "committed to reaching negotiated agreements with CUPW that are affordable, support its people and help build a sustainable future for the company."
The company is adamant their latest offers to the Canadian Union of Postal Workers, "enable the company’s modernization while balancing its financial realities with fairness and respect for employees."
