More than 53,000 Canada Post employees represented by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) will begin voting on final contract offers starting next week, as the Crown corporation grapples with mounting financial losses.
The Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) has scheduled a vote between July 21 and Aug. 1, allowing employees to cast their ballots online or by phone. The CIRB, an independent federal tribunal, will administer the confidential vote.
There are about 200 Canada Post workers in Prince George and the surrounding area.
The vote follows a prolonged impasse in contract talks between CUPW and Canada Post, which have stretched over 19 months and included four offers, mediation, and a federal Industrial Inquiry Commission.
Eligible voters include employees in the Urban and Rural and Suburban Mail Carrier (RSMC) bargaining units. Each group will vote on its respective offer. If a majority in a unit accepts the proposal, it will become the new collective agreement for that group.
Canada Post tabled its final offers on May 28. Key elements include a 13.59 per cent wage increase over four years, a signing bonus of $1,000 for full-time employees ($500 for others), and the preservation of the defined benefit pension plan and job security provisions. The proposal also introduces part-time roles to expand weekend parcel delivery and outlines phased changes to delivery operations to better match mail volumes.
The federal government invoked a rarely used provision of the Canada Labour Code to direct a vote in the public interest.
The timing of the vote comes as Canada Post faces worsening financial headwinds. In June, strike-related uncertainty drove daily operating losses to nearly $10 million, more than double the losses recorded in the same month a year earlier. Parcel volumes have fallen as customers turn to private carriers.
CUPW resumed strike activity in May by banning overtime, reigniting service disruptions that began with a national strike in late 2024.
Canada Post has warned it cannot sustain the ongoing losses. Since 2018, the company has reported more than $3.8 billion in pre-tax losses, including a $1.3-billion operating loss in 2024.
In May, a federal Industrial Inquiry Commission described the corporation as being in an “existential crisis,” calling it “effectively insolvent.” The commission urged both sides to abandon the status quo and adapt to a changing marketplace.
Canada Post says the proposed changes are necessary to rebuild its parcel business, preserve jobs, and protect the long-term viability of the national postal service.
Full details of the offers are available at canadapost.ca/offers.
