‘Our goal has never been a strike’: Local Canada Post workers reeling from 2-year ‘mess’

Canada Post workers are voting on a new contract offer a union head says doesn't include a lot of new concessions.

As unionized workers once again vote on Canada Post’s latest contract offer across the country, the president of Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) Local 730 in Alberta said his members are feeling “pretty tired.”

“I mean, we’ve been doing this for two years … So everybody’s pretty tired, but I think overall morale is still pretty good,” said James Ball.

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CUPW Local 730 represents about 2,700 of 55,000 unionized postal service workers ranging from Jasper east to Lloydminster and Lac La Biche south to Ponoka.

The vote on a new contract began Monday and will be open to CUPW members until Aug. 1.

Ball said the newest contract is the same offer as the one given to them by the Crown corporation back in November 2023.

The offer includes wage hikes of about 13 per cent over four years. It also adds part-time workers Canada Post has said are necessary to keep the postal service alive.

“It’s a mess,” Ball said.

Recently, some CUPW negotiators have urged members to vote against the contract. Ball still said he sees a strike vote among his members as “unlikely.”

“Our goal has always been to get a negotiated contract,” he said. “Our goal has never been to strike.”

A Canada Post spokesperson said the Crown corporation had operating losses amounting to $10 million a day through June, and in the event the vote is negative, the uncertainty will continue.

In the meantime, though, Ball said many workers are refusing overtime until a negotiation is made.

“The only two pathways out of this are negotiation and arbitration … if they choose to lock us out, then they’re just there to punish us for not giving them exactly what they wanted the whole time.”

According to a survey released Monday by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), a postal strike could push 63 per cent of businesses to walk away from Canada Post permanently.

CFIB also said 70 per cent of businesses have encouraged customers to use digital methods, 45 per cent have switched to private couriers and 27 per cent delayed their mail altogether.

With files from the Canadian Press, CTV News Edmonton’s Darcy Seaton and CTVNews.ca