There have been many questions about how the Canada Labour Code applies to our current situation. As you know, we held a strike vote and that mandate is good for 60 days. Our 60-day period ends on August 25, 2016. What are our options at that point?
On Saturday, over 1000 postal workers and allies gathered in Montreal and marched to Prime Minister Trudeau’s constituency office to deliver our message to the government. It is time for Canada Post to negotiate seriously with us and address the issues that are key to achieving new collective agreements.
As we prepare to attend rallies across the country over the next few days to invite the Liberal Government to get involved and tell Canada Post to negotiate seriously, it is time to plan our next move. It is time for our actions to intensify. Canada Post management must get the message that we are, and have always been, ready to sit down and hammer out the terms and conditions for our new collective agreements and we expect the same from them.
On August 6, 2016, postal workers and their supporters will be gathering in Montreal and other communities across our country to send a strong message to the shareholder and owner of Canada Post - the Government of Canada. The Canada Post Negotiating Committee must come to the table ready to settle the key issues and work with us to achieve negotiated collective agreements.
The attack on Urban workers is directly related to the inequities that RSMC members face. The only way to stop these attacks is to achieve full equity for RSMCs. CPC’s initial position was to attack the following Urban benefits and working conditions. All of these are benefits that the RSMCs do not have:
Yesterday, we updated you on the history and timelines of this round of negotiations. We are sure that many of you are now asking what comes next. At this point in the process, that is the million dollar question but we all need to be prepared for anything. We all need to continue doing what we are doing and keep the pressure on Canada Post to seriously negotiate.
Negotiations between the parties have now been underway for over eight months. They began on November 20, 2015, intensified starting in April 2016, and are still ongoing. On June 25, 2016, the employer presented the Union with two global offers. Canada Post initially said that these were the best offers it could make under the circumstances. On July 1st, 2016, the Union submitted two global offers of its own to the employer.
We have taken a strong stand against two-tier wages, benefits and pensions throughout our history. CUPW has stood strong on this issue and we will continue to do so. The current wage structure in the Urban Ops collective agreement may not meet the definition of two-tier because all employees will eventually reach the same maximum rate but it is not a fair system. This wage structure has one group of employees with a starting rate that is over $5.00 per hour lower than the other employees that they work alongside. It also takes these employees 7 years to reach the maximum rate, once they become regular employees while their co-workers reach the maximum in 5 years. CPC and the previous government forced this unfair wage system on us during the last round of negotiations and now is the time to correct this injustice.
Proper staffing is important for many reasons; health and safety, morale, reducing overtime and providing good service to the public. Has Canada Post done anything during this round of negotiations to improve staffing? Has Canada Post proposed a real solution to these issues? NO!
Support Postal Banking - Download and Sign the Petition
Canada needs a postal bank. Thousands of rural towns and villages in our country do not have a bank, but many of them have a post office that could provide financial services. As well, nearly two million Canadians desperately need an alternative to payday lenders. A postal bank could be that alternative. Download and sign the petition urging the Government of Canada to instruct Canada Post to add postal banking, with a mandate for financial inclusion.
Postal workers are well aware that the planet is getting hotter. More and more, we are facing extreme events - such as an increasing number of wildfires with their toxic smoke, lethal heat domes and atmospheric rivers bringing more rain, more coastal storms and more flooding. But it’s children who are most at risk.
A federal election has now been called for April 28, 2025. Although the Canadian Union of Postal Workers does not endorse any party, we will be putting pressure on candidates from all parties to commit to defending our public post office and good stable jobs.
On Thursday, March 20, CUPW will join U.S. postal workers in a day of action to defend the public post office.
The United States Postal Service (USPS) is facing one of the most serious threats in its history. Postal worker jobs and unions, and the USPS’s public service mission are under assault by the Trump administration that seems to have one end goal in mind: privatization.
Following targeted testing in late 2024 and early 2025, the Canada Post MyMoney Account is now available nationwide. This marks a key step in expanding Canada Post’s financial services offerings.
On March 3rd and 4th, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) continued with its constitutional challenge before the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB).
A Federal election could be called in the coming weeks. As is the case, CUPW has updated its pre-election report card, grading all federal parties on the issues that are important to CUPW members.