Unionized mail workers stopped processing and delivering unaddressed flyers Monday in the latest escalation of their labour dispute with Canada Post.
The directive was issued Friday by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers and was effective 12:01 a.m. on Monday (Sept. 15). At the same time, the union said it would be lifting its national overtime ban.
"It’s been almost four weeks since we provided Canada Post with our latest global offers, and we’ve yet to hear anything meaningful in response. With Canada Post abandoning bargaining once again, it gives us no choice but to ramp up the pressure," says the latest negotiations update from the union's national president Jan Simpson on Monday.
It adds the union can't bargain with itself and Canada Post "must come back to the bargaining table with a realistic attitude and work with the union’s offers."
Canada Post said in a statement Monday that it first learned of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers decision to ban the delivery of neighbourhood mail – specifically unaddressed direct mail – through a news conference. Canada Post said the ban does not impact addressed items, such as personalized mail, postal code targeting mail and transactional mail, or parcels.
The Crown corporation said that as a result, it would stop accepting neighbourhood mail items effective immediately. The statement adds that until further notice, no neighbourhood mail items will be accepted for drop off at plants, depots, post offices or other Canada Post facilities.
In the update, Simpson also said union members help rallies outside of MP offices across the country as the House of Commons reopened.
The union called for a hike to Canada Post's wage offer in late August when bargaining had resumed.
Combined demands for both the urban workers and the rural and suburban workers. include a nine-per-cent increase for wages in year one, four per cent in year two and three per cent in each of years three and four. The union is also calling for an update to the cost of living allowance provision to include protection for the period of Feb. 1, 2025 to Jan. 31, 2028 for insurance against unforeseen inflation.
Canada Post, in its May 28 offer, put forward a 13-per-cent wage increase over four years: six per cent in year one, three per cent in year two and two per cent each in years three and four.
