Postal strike impact on small business

Striking postal workers demonstrate in Valleyfield

Sarah Rennie – LJI reporter

The 85 members of Valleyfield local 460 of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) have been waving flags and handmade signs during daily demonstrations outside the Canada Post depot on Victoria Street in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield.

The local represents Valley postal workers from Hemmingford to Dundee as well as the city of Valleyfield. Its members, along with the 55,000 other postal workers across Canada, walked off the job as part of a nationwide general strike on November 15.

Negotiations with a government-imposed mediator have been taking place since November 19 with both the urban and the rural and suburban mail carriers (RSMC) bargaining units. The CUPW has rejected a proposed 11.5 per cent wage increase over four years, asking instead for 22 per cent over the same period.

Talks between the RSMC union representative and management have focused on issues such as pay stability, validation, hourly rates, and maintaining hours. The urban units have focused on issues such as salary, minimum hours for part-time workers, and weekend delivery demands aimed at competing with “gig-economy” platforms that deliver parcels as cheaply as possible. The union is concerned this could impact full-time carrier routes on weekdays.

Postal workers with Local 460 in Valleyfield have been demonstrating in front of the Canada Post depot on Victoria Street in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield since the general strike was called on November 15. (PHOTO Sarah Rennie)

According to daily negotiations updates posted by the CUPW there has been some progress, with sides exchanging proposals; however, a lot of ground remains.

The federal government ended past work stoppages in 2011 and 2018 by legislating postal workers back to their routes. Jonathan Theoret, the president of Local 460, said he hopes the government will let the employees fight this one out. “We had a 98.5 [per cent] strike vote. That’s really strong,” he said, noting this is the first general strike since 2011.

“We have had special legislation every four years for 20 years,” he explained, noting that the workers signed a contract extension without negotiation two years ago during the pandemic. “Now is the time to ask for what we want,” he continued, noting that salary-wise, employees want to return to the same purchasing power they had in 2020.

Theoret said that so far, support from the public seems strong. “I understand that the market has changed in the past six years. I think the public likes Canada Post, and it is here to stay. It is a service we offer to everyone, even in the North,” he commented. “I understand there are financial challenges, but we all have to face this together,” he added, suggesting Canada Post needs to change as well.

No pickup or delivery

The work stoppage has shut down Canada Post operations entirely. The Crown corporation has said that mail and parcels will not be processed or delivered during the strike, and some post offices will be closed. No mail will be accepted, and service guarantees for items already in the network will be affected.

According to Canada Post, items will be delivered as quickly as possible once operations resume on a first-in, first-out basis, though it cautions that processing and delivery may take some time to return to normal.

The uncertainty around Canada Post’s ability to deliver the sizeable backlog of mail in a timely matter once the strike ends has some consumers holding off on purchases. Christina Fasoula, the owner of the Tricot Laines Studio yarn store and gift shop in Huntingdon, relies on Canada Post to receive and ship her products and has already lost sales due to the strike.

“It is not like we are in Montreal where there are other options. There are multiple companies that you can use to ship without Canada Post, but they are in larger towns. For us, it is not an option,” she explained, noting those options can also be expensive.

Fasoula says that while the strike is causing some complications for small businesses, she is hopeful that locals will consider doing their holiday shopping closer to home, where they can skip the stress of waiting for delivery.

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Canada Post strike creates uncertainty for small business before holidays, CFIB says

Martin C. Barry, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

More than a week into the Canada Post strike, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) says it is disappointed by the work stoppage’s impact on small businesses and it is urging Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) to quickly come to an agreement to avoid further disruption as the country heads into the holiday shopping season.

According to CFIB spokesperson Dariya Baiguzhiyeva, three quarters of Canada’s small firms say they stand to be negatively affected by the work stoppage, particularly with challenges to cash flow due to delayed invoices and cheques and higher cost delivery alternatives.

Small business suffering

The CFIB is urging Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) to quickly come to an agreement.

“While many Canadians may not depend on Canada Post as much as they once did, small businesses often rely on the postal system to ship goods, send marketing materials to consumers, send invoices and receive payments from suppliers and business customers,” the CFIB said in a statement.

“With the critical holiday shopping season around the corner and limited alternatives in many parts of Canada, avoiding a postal disruption is important,” the federation said.

They depend on Canada Post

According to a recent CFIB Flash Survey (Impact of Work Stoppages), a strong majority (79%) of small businesses rely on Canada Post services to do business.

Three quarters (75%) of small firms said they will be negatively affected by a work stoppage, particularly with challenges to cash flow due to delayed invoices and cheques and higher cost delivery alternatives.

The federation points out that small firms depend on a reliable postal service, and they need mail and parcel delivery service provided by Canada Post to remain fully operational.

“We’re asking both parties to negotiate in good faith and reach a quick resolution for the sake of Canadian small businesses and consumers,” the CFIB statement continued.

Back-to-work legislation

“And as the federal government has ignored almost every attempt by Canada Post to deal with its unwieldy cost structures, CFIB will call on government to use all its powers (including binding arbitration or back-to-work legislation) to keep the postal system working if negotiations are unsuccessful.”

In the online survey, which has been active since November 13, the number of respondents was 1,461. The CFIB says that for comparison purposes, a probability sample with the same number of respondents would have a margin of error of at most +/- 2.6%, 19 times out of 20.

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