Dozens of Members Fired in Canada Post Union-busting

Some of our brothers and sisters in the processing plants in Vancouver, Montreal, and Toronto have been terminated arbitrarily. The Customs Processing and Import Program (CPIP) workers, who worked for Canada Post through Adecco/SQR (a temp agency) have been issued a notice of termination.

They worked in the same plants with urban unit members, alongside the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) members who also work in customs processing.

We were proud to organize these workers. We had more than a year of tough negotiations to gain them wage increases, seniority-based schedule bidding, Health and Safety committees and more. The unit’s collective agreement – CUPW’s first negotiated agreement with a temp agency – was ratified by members in November 2014.

Now Canada Post has pulled the rug from under these members by tendering the contract to another placement agency. Canada Post didn’t even notify CUPW of the new contractor or make any efforts to recognize the workers’ experience – we heard about it when the members heard about it from SQR (Adecco). Some of the members had more than ten years of service doing the CPIP work. They had finally won improved working conditions after working for years for just above minimum wage.

This is a tactic to circumvent the union, and we won’t stand for it.

We’ve told Canada Post and the new contractors that we expect the workers’ rights, and our role in representing them, to be recognized. The locals involved are talking with the National office about what is to be done. We may call on all members to support the workers, please be informed and ready to help efforts to get them restored to their jobs and conditions.