Canada Post strike leaves small businesses scrambling for alternatives

Owner of The Record Centre, John Thompson, looks through records on Monday, September 29, 2025 (Katelyn Wilson/CTV News).

Small businesses in Ottawa that rely on Canada Post’s services say they’re feeling the effects of the recently launched nation-wide strike.

At The Record Centre in Ottawa, hundreds of packages from online orders are stacked at the back of the shop, waiting to be mailed across Canada and internationally.

Dozens more, already shipped, are stuck in limbo after postal workers walked off the job.

“They announced this strike overnight and I have all these packages, maybe 20 or 30 in transit, just sitting somewhere,” said John Thompson, owner of The Record Centre. “That’s 20 or 30 customers that aren’t happy.”

Thompson began selling records online during the pandemic to complement his brick-and-mortar store across the street. He’s now turning to private couriers to keep new orders moving, but it comes at a cost.

“This time I’m going to lose on shipping,” Thompson said. “Right now, I’m probably losing five dollars on every item I ship because my new method is more expensive.”

This latest strike was sparked by Ottawa’s plan to phase out door-to-door mail delivery within the next decade — a move the union says would lead to widespread job losses.

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) says small businesses are bearing the brunt of this dispute.

“Canadian small businesses are thinking of turning away from Canada Post because they’re not predictable,” a CFIB spokesperson said. “That’s where the private sector can take a larger share of a service that’s already declining.”

CFIB estimates the last strike alone cost entrepreneurs more than $1 billion.

For businesses that rely on platforms like Etsy, or operate strictly online, the impact is even greater.

Ananda Elixirs, an Ottawa-based wellness business that sells online, says more than 100 orders are stuck at Canada Post. Shipping to rural or remote areas has also become far more expensive.

“The other day when I was trying to ship some of these packages with Canada Post it would be nine dollars,” said co-owner Dylan Dreiling. “With the other options it’s $65 to $70 dollars for the same little package, to a remote area in Alberta.”

The company says the unreliability has them rethinking Canada Post altogether.

“Unless there’s a new agreement signed and squared away, I don’t see us going back.”

On Monday jobs minister Patty Hajdu urged Canada Post to quickly table a new offer to the union of striking postal workers.

So far, the federal government has refused to intervene in the labour dispute.

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