Canada Post, union reach tentative agreements, with vote expected in new year

Business analyst Ian Lee says the postal workers’ wage increase is going to “exacerbate the gap” between Canada Post and private courier companies.

Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers say they have reached tentative agreements.

The deals announced Monday cover both the Urban Postal Operations and Rural and Suburban Mail Carriers bargaining units.

CUPW’s national board is recommending members accept the deals during ratification votes set to be held in early 2026.

“These outcomes reflect the strength and solidarity of postal workers,” CUPW national president Jan Simpson said.

“In the face of extraordinary challenges, we stood together, secured meaningful improvements and pushed back on significant rollbacks.”

The union and Crown corporation said they’ve agreed strike or lockout action will not take place during the ratification process.

Canada Post said the agreements include a 6.5 per cent wage increase in the first year, followed by a three per cent hike in the second year and increases matching the annual inflation rate in years three through five. They also include enhanced benefits and a weekend parcel delivery model.

Both agreements would be in effect until Jan. 31, 2029.

If the agreements are finalized in the new year, it would cap off more than two years of labour strife between the ailing Crown corporation and its largest union which represents about 55,000 workers. The two sides have sparred over wages and structural changes to the postal service’s workforce, including proposals to introduce more part-time workers and seven-day-a-week delivery.

Postal workers have taken to the picket line on multiple occasions in the bargaining process, including a disruptive strike ahead of the holidays last year. This year, workers have been back on the job since the union and company came to an “agreement in principle” about a month ago.

Canada Post has been in dire financial straits. Its most recent quarterly report in November included a $541-million before-tax loss, the largest in its history. It received $1 billion federal loan at the beginning of this year that was meant to carry it through the end of March of next year, but Canada Post now expects it to run out by year-end.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Dec. 22, 2025.