Canada Post says it’s moving ahead with the restructuring plan mandated by the federal government in the fall, which could permanently end door-to-door mail delivery.
In an emailed statement to CTVNews.ca on Monday, the Crown corporation said the broad transformation of its business model will “ensure we can meet the evolving needs of Canadians without becoming a recurring burden on taxpayers.”
In late September of last year, Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement Joël Lightbound announced that Canada Post was facing an “existential crisis,” with billions of dollars’ worth of losses that had accumulated since 2018.
Lightbound said Canada Post was “effectively insolvent” at the time and called the situation unsustainable before directing the corporation to implement a number of transformational changes to ensure its survival.
They included changes to letter mail delivery standards, the conversion of all remaining door-to-door delivery addresses to community mailboxes, and other modernization efforts.
“We continue to work closely with the government on the details of our proposed transformation plan,” Canada Post’s statement read.
“At the same time, given the government’s direction to begin taking initial steps, we are reaching out to our bargaining agents to consult on our approach to several proposed changes.”
‘Attempt to derail our negotiations’
The employees’ union has repeatedly pushed back against the changes proposed by the federal government, saying they will jeopardize jobs and disproportionately impact rural and remote communities that rely on Canada Post services.
“This is not the right time to consult. We are fully focused on the upcoming ratification votes, a significant undertaking,” the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) said in a press release on Monday.
CUPW announced a nationwide strike immediately after Lightbound’s announcement in September. The union eventually shifted to rotating strikes before agreeing in principle to a new agreement with Canada Post in November, but the deal has not yet been ratified.
“This latest move by Canada Post and the government is yet again another attempt to derail our negotiations process,” CUPW’s statement continued.
‘An important turning point’
CUPW noted that Lightbound’s announcement gave Canada Post 45 days to submit a plan to the government outlining the company’s transformation.
“It has now been more than four months since Canada Post provided this plan to the Government. We have repeatedly requested access to it, yet neither the Government nor Canada Post has shared the plan with us, and it has still not been made public,” CUPW said.
“We will continue to fight back against cuts to the postal service. The Government must not approve any changes to Canada Post or the Canadian Postal Service Charter without a full public mandate review that includes input from all stakeholders in every region of the country.”
The Canadian Postal Service Charter, established in 2009, sets expectations for Canada Post’s standards of service, “ensuring they are universal, affordable, reliable, convenient, secure and responsive to needs,” according to the federal government.
The recently mandated changes to Canada Post would require amendments to the charter, Canada Post confirmed on Monday. The corporation said it is in ongoing discussions about that with the federal government.
“Canada Post has reached an important turning point,” said Canada Post in its Monday statement.
“Our transformation will strengthen the postal service, allow us to be a better partner for businesses, and help us meet our dual mandate of delivering for all Canadians in a way that is financially self-sustainable.”
