Canada Post to seek 'clarification' from feds on face mask policy for employees

Despite experts calling on Canadians to upgrade their masks to curb the airborne spread of COVID-19, Canada Post employees who showed up to work wearing an N95 mask were being told to switch to company-issued masks or risk being sent home.

Now, the postal service says it would be seeking clarification from the federal government on mask guidance.

"Our approach has evolved over the last two years as their guidance has evolved. This includes our workplace mask requirements," Canada Post spokesperson Jon Hamilton told CTVNews.ca in an email statement on Thursday.

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"We are now working with federal authorities to seek clarification and understand their recent guidance so that we can continue to ensure we are doing everything possible to keep our employees safe."

Postal workers had been required to wear a face covering provided by Canada Post -- either a reusable cloth face covering or a disposable medical mask. Employees were told they'd be sent home without pay if they came to work with their own mask, even if the mask was of higher quality than the ones provided by their employer.

Canada Post previously told CTVNews.ca that this was necessary under the rules set out by Employment and Social Development Canada. However, the office of the federal minister of labour told CTVNews.ca that there’s nothing in the Canada Labour Code or federal occupational health and safety regulations that prevents workers from wearing higher-quality face coverings.

The postal service's mask policy also prompted criticism from the Canadian Union of Postal Workers, which has asked Canada Post to provide N95 masks, or at the very least allow employees to wear their own.

Canada Post says that it has "strictly adhered" to the advice of health experts throughout the pandemic.

"We understood from the start that they were the experts, not us, and therefore following their lead was crucial to keeping our people safe," Canada Post said.

With files from CTVNews.ca's Ben Cousins and Sonja Puzic.