First off is the Union statement
CUPW Issues 72-Hour Strike Notice: A Call for Fair Negotiation
Tuesday May 20 2025
2023-2027/251
No. 83 - AMENDED
On Monday, May 19, CUPW issued a 72-hour strike notice to Canada Post. This action was not taken lightly, but it was done for several reasons.
The collective agreements for the Urban Postal Operations and the Rural and Suburban Mail Carriers bargaining units, which were extended by the Government in December 2024, are set to expire Friday, May 23 at midnight.
CUPW negotiators met with Canada Post over several days at the end of April and early May, with the goal of resolving our bargaining dispute and achieving new collective agreements for both bargaining units.
Last week, Canada Post walked away from the bargaining table for the third time, telling the Union it would return with new comprehensive offers. A week has passed. With the expiry of our collective agreements drawing closer by the day, we are still waiting. The clock is ticking, and so far, Canada Post has yet to deliver.
The day after Canada Post walked away and paused bargaining, it fired another shot, by threatening to unilaterally change your working conditions and suspend employee benefits if new agreements aren’t reached. This aggressive move undermines good faith bargaining and the stability of our public postal service. It had to be met with strong resistance. Postal workers won’t be threatened or coerced into accepting offers that will gut our collective agreements and undermine good, stable jobs.
Our right to strike was taken away from us and put on “a time out” by former Minister of Labour Steven MacKinnon’s orders and the Canada Industrial Relations Board in December 2024. By issuing this notice, we are simply announcing our intention to continue our legal strike that was put on pause by the CIRB.
The Work Continues
Although we have served notices, there is still time for negotiations to take place. We remain committed to achieving negotiated collective agreements. Your National Executive Board and Negotiating Committees urge Canada Post to return to the bargaining table with real offers that protect the health and well-being of postal workers, support the communities we serve, and ensure a strong and sustainable public postal service for all.
In solidarity,
Jan Simpson
National President
Campaign Coordinators for the Mandate Review of Canada Post
Tuesday September 23 2025
2023-2027/330
As part of our ongoing campaign to keep our public postal service a strong dynamic entity in our communities, CUPW is appointing coordinators for our campaign around the upcoming Mandate Review of Canada Post (planned between October 2025 and March 2026). Successful applicants for these posts will dedicate a lot of energy and time towards helping CUPW achieve its goals.
In addition to working in our communities to preserve and expand postal services, from now until the end of December the Union will be reaching out to allies, municipalities and labour groups to demand a delay in starting the review and to push for a fully public review when it is announced. The coordinators are an integral part of the union’s plan for success.
Coordinators will work with locals, regions, community groups and the public to:
- Promote CUPW’s positions during the Mandate Review of Canada Post including, but not limited to advocating service expansion, preventing privatization and deregulation of Canada Post
- Ensure that any review of Canada Post is fully public, with hearings and input from all stakeholders in all regions
- Build support with community allies and assist locals in organizing events and meetings to support our campaign.
- Ensure MPs that do not speak out publicly against moves to privatize or deregulate Canada Post, or increase precarious work face significant public pressure, risking their seat in the next election
- Build support for alternatives to cuts, such as improved postal banking, senior check-ins, community hubs and more
- Work with CUPW’s Communications and Research department.
- Participate in the planning and implementation of our Union’s program.
- Provide written reports to the 3rd National Vice President on activities.
- Support the labour movement’s campaign to protect and enhance workers’ rights.
Qualifications
- Ability to work well on your own and with others.
- Ability to multi-task, set priorities and meet deadlines.
- Strong organizational skills.
- Experience with community organizing is an asset.
- Experience and commitment working with the labour or social change movements.
- All applications will be considered from Members-In-Good-Standing. Please indicate proficiency in French, English and other languages.
- Ability to work in Microsoft Word software and other computer programs.
Coordinators will work under the direction of the 3rd National Vice-President
Deadline for applications: October 1st, 2025
Duration: Until December 31, 2025
Pay: The Union Representative rate of pay.
Applications from members of equity seeking groups are encouraged. Self-identification is optional.
Please fill out the application form available on the CUPW website.
In solidarity,
Jody Hutton
3rd National Vice-President
Minister Lightbound to Make Announcement – Silence from Canada Post
Wednesday September 24 2025
2023-2027/331
No 140
CUPW has learned through a media advisory that the Minister responsible for Canada Post, Joël Lightbound, will give an update on the future of Canada Post tomorrow (September 25) at 12:45pm ET. The advisory explains that the Minister will provide “details on new measures to address the challenges facing Canada Post and advance its transformation.”
Although CUPW leadership met with Minister Lightbound last week, he gave no indication this announcement was coming. The Union does not have any details about what the Minister plans to announce. We were supposed to meet with the Minister again this week, but that meeting has been postponed. We may find out why tomorrow.
Silence from Canada Post
It has been over 50 days since Canada Post learned of the membership’s rejection of its “final offers,” and 35 days since the Union provided its latest offers on August 20. What is Canada Post management waiting for? Where is the urgency Canada Post spoke of in July? Do they think we will forget what we rejected? Or is possible that Canada Post is waiting for more help from the government?
Given the announcement set for tomorrow and that we learned through the media today that Canada Post is expected to present new global offers to us on Friday, we may soon have an answer to these questions. Canada Post has yet to confirm this with the Union.
This shouldn’t surprise us. Canada Post prefers to talk with anyone but the Union. We are left wondering how Canada Post can claim to want to resolve our labour dispute when it refuses to communicate its intentions directly with us or at least through the federal mediators.
Presenting the offers on Friday gives the Union no time to adequately respond to members before the weekend. Negotiators will need time to read and decipher the offers, bulletins will need to be written, translated, and sent to members. All of this work takes time. CPC will use this time to push its own message and agenda to stoke division in the Union. This is all part of their plan. Don’t be surprised.
The timing of the announcement coupled with new global offers could reveal a lot about Canada Post’s plans for bargaining, our jobs and the future of the public post office. If Canada Post drops it demands to gut the contracts and deal with our issues; we can come to an agreement quickly. If they ignore the overwhelming vote to reject their vision from the employees that do the work, they are proving they have no intention to achieve negotiated collective agreements.
In solidarity,
Jan Simpson
National President
Public Post Office Under Attack
Thursday September 25 2025
2023-2027/332
No. 141
Today, the minister responsible for Canada Post, Joël Lightbound, announced massive changes to the Government’s mandate for Canada Post and huge service cutbacks to the public.
This announcement was an outrage. Minister Lightbound gave the Union no indication that he was going to do this when leadership met with him last week. The Minister said he had the “utmost respect” for postal workers. This is no way to show it.
Lightbound announced that the Government was accepting and instructing Canada Post to implement the recommendations from William Kaplan’s Industrial Inquiry Commission (IIC) Report from May. These include:
- Converting 4 million addresses to Community Mailboxes.
- Gutting the rural moratorium on post office closures.
- Giving Canada Post more “flexibility” in its delivery standards, including by cutting the requirement to deliver 5 days a week.
- Giving Canada Post the ability to raise stamp rates more frequently.
The Minister emphasized the importance to serve all Canadians, but these recommendations will only undermine public service. We have no details on how any of them will be implemented.
Converting more addresses to CMBs makes little sense when customers want their parcels to the door. The Government has completely failed to consider the problems it faced a decade ago when CPC last tried to convert door-to-door to CMB delivery.
The announcement also ignores how changes to delivery standards could impact mail volumes and confidence in service. And it fails to consider the importance of the moratorium on post office closures to help ensure universal service.
These recommendations could result in major job losses. On this, the Minister simply dodged questions from reporters.
In accepting the Kaplan report, the Government has completely rejected the need to diversify revenue streams and expand services, accepting instead Canada Post’s requests for cuts.
Following the announcement, we heard from the federal mediators that Canada Post needs until next week to present new global offers.
Postal Workers Will Fight Back
This slapdash approach without full public consultation is an insult to the public and to postal workers. The Government may act as the sole shareholder, but the public owns the post office. There was no indication as to what this means for the planned mandate review – nor when that will happen given these massive changes.
We cannot accept this attack on good jobs and public services. Let’s now turn our efforts to making sure the Government and Canada Post hear us loud and clear. We have done it before. We will do it again.
Strike Action Update
In response to the Government’s attack on our postal service and workers, effective immediately, all CUPW members at Canada Post are on a nation-wide strike.
In solidarity,
Jan Simpson
National President
CUPW launches national strike
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) has launched a national strike following today’s government announcement on Canada Post’s transformation. We’re disappointed that the union chose to escalate their strike activity, which will further deteriorate Canada Post’s financial situation.
No changes to terms and conditions of employment
At this time, we are not making any changes to employees’ terms and conditions of employment, including health benefits. However, employees will not be paid for any time they are on strike.
We will inform employees if there are any changes to the terms and conditions of employment.
Keeping you informed
Watch for updates on the Negotiations Hub.
Support is available
Thank you for your continued patience as we work through this process – we know this is not easy. If you or someone in your family needs support, our confidential Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP) is available
@fergua3 wrote:
CUPW seems to be content to let the Canadian tax payer continue to fund a business model that is 30 years out of date. CUPW workers have a VERY good deal and a FANTASTIC wage and benefits package right now....especially for a bunch of people who barely finished high school (if they did). Yet they want more, more, more, more and are using their advantage of monopoly to try and get it. If it were possible i would fire them all and start over.
The answer is for the government to declare that the Postal Service is an essential service. No more strikes and the employees can still have their union bargain in good faith. It has been like this in the USA for many years. We the people need to make our voices heard for lawmakers to change the law.
CUPW negotiations: Canada Post reassessing new Global Offers following changes announced by the Government of Canada
Canada Post has informed the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) that, in light of the significant transformational changes announced by the Government of Canada, it is reassessing its new Global Offers.
In his announcement on September 25, the Honourable Joël Lightbound, Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement, said Canada Post must take decisive action to deliver the services Canadians need in a way that is financially sustainable.
We remain committed to reaching negotiated agreements with CUPW that are affordable, support our people and help build a sustainable future for the company. We have confirmed with CUPW that we are working diligently and will present these new offers as soon as possible.
We support the reforms announced by the government, which will allow our country’s national postal service to chart a strong, financially sustainable path forward that better meets the evolving needs of Canadians. We are also disappointed that, in response to the government’s reforms, the union chose to launch a national strike. This will further deteriorate Canada Post’s financial situation.
Canadians deserve a postal service that is reliable, affordable and sustainable. As we begin the process of modernizing the country’s postal service, we will make every effort to minimize the impact on Canadians and continuously look for ways to enhance service. We will also proceed thoughtfully and treat our employees with fairness and respect.
The Government Has Failed the Public
Friday September 26 2025
2023-2027/334
No. 143
Yesterday, when Minister Joël Lightbound announced the Government’s plan to gut Canada Post, he suggested the new Liberal Government had a mandate from Canadians to take “decisive action” on hard political issues. The “new measures” he announced to “save Canada Post,” he said, were just the kind of decisive action Canadians elected the Carney Government to take.
Yet, nothing could be further from the truth. Minister Lightbound can spin it all he wants, but his announcement yesterday was a direct assault on our public post office, the public’s right to participate in political processes, and good, unionized jobs across the country.
In the face of the US Government’s threats of economic war, this Government was elected because it promised to defend our important institutions, not tear them down. We thought we had our “elbows up” to build our self-reliance and infrastructure, not hit ourselves in the face.
The Public Must Have its Say
Months ago, when the Government first posted its notice on its “Consulting with Canadians” website that it was planning a “Canada Post Corporation Review,” the posting said that public consultations were “required to revise the Canadian Postal Service Charter.”
Later, with no explanation, the Government changed the notice to say, “Notionally, public consultations may be undertaken to consider the Canadian Postal Service Charter.”
Now, with no warning and no chance for public input, the Government has announced sweeping service cutbacks. We can’t let them get away with it.
That’s why we are calling on the Government to put an immediate stop to all service cuts to Canada Post. Before implementing any changes to Canada Post’s mandate, the Government must allow the public to have its say.
We are now working with our allies in the labour movement, municipalities, and social justice organizations across the country to get this message across.
Canada Post Delays Presenting Offers
Late this afternoon, the federal mediators told us that Canada Post needs more time to formulate its new global offers.
Canada Post will let us know Monday morning whether we will meet Wednesday or Thursday to receive the new offers.
According to the federal mediators, Canada Post needs time to take into consideration Minister Lightbound’s September 25 announcement.
Fight Back
We’ll need every member to play a role in this fight. Our public post office is on the line.
In solidarity,
Jan Simpson
National President
