About 55,000 postal workers across Canada are on strike, disrupting mail and parcel deliveries leading into the busy year-end holidays.
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) launched the strike at midnight on Nov. 15 after failing to reach a new collective agreement with their employer, Canada Post.
The strike comes ahead of Black Friday and the start of the holiday shopping season, when Canadians rely on the postal system to send and receive gifts, packages, and Christmas cards.
Canada Post said in a written statement that its operations have been shutdown, impacting millions of Canadian homes and businesses.
The Crown corporation said no mail or parcels will be processed or delivered during the strike, and some post offices will be closed.
Once operations resume, the corporation said that mail and parcels will be delivered on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Workers gave Canada Post a 72-hour strike notice on Nov. 12. In October, workers voted 95% in favour of a strike.
Canada Post’s latest contract offer included wage increases that totaled 11.5% over four years. It also offered protection of the traditional defined benefit pension for current employees.
However, CUPW has said management’s latest offer wasn’t enough and that the two parties remain far apart on several important issues.
Canada Post, which is a Crown Corporation, has lost a total of $3 billion since 2018 as fewer people and businesses use the postal system.
