Time for government to end postal strike

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This article was published 04/12/2024 (514 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

With the Canadian postal strike now in its third week, and no genuine hope of resolution on the horizon, it’s fair to ask how much additional time must pass before the Trudeau government steps in with back-to-work legislation.

While many Canadians are holding off on mailing cards and sending gifts during the holiday season, the harm caused by the strike to Canadian businesses, and to the Canadian economy in general, continues to mount.

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business projects that, as of today, the strike has cost Canada’s small- and medium-sized businesses more than $1 billion. It estimates the strike is costing small businesses $76 million each day. Here in Manitoba, it projects that businesses in that category are losing $3.34 million per day.

Last week, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce said the strike is causing the greatest harm to Canadian businesses that are engaged in e-commerce, many of whom rely on the holiday season in order to remain profitable.

A report in this newspaper yesterday revealed the harm being caused by the strike to two Brandon retailers, both of which rely on e-commerce transactions to create sales, and on Canada Post to deliver their merchandise to purchasers.

Morgan James, owner of Leatherwood Custom Workwear, told the Sun his company normally ships more than 100 orders across Canada each month. “We’ve always offered free shipping through Canada Post,” he says, “but now we are forced to use UPS, and the (cost) difference is staggering.”

He adds that “While I haven’t experienced direct monetary losses, increased shipping costs and missed delivery timelines have resulted in lost sales.”

James’s concern is echoed by Christine Steele, the owner of Blush Silks, who says the disruption caused by the strike is threatening the viability of her business model. She estimates her sales have fallen by 40 per cent since the strike began, adding that “The higher shipping rates have driven away customers because nobody wants to buy a $30 product and pay $13 for shipping.”

The cost and inconvenience for Canadian business owners and consumers continues to mount, yet there are no signs the dispute is moving toward resolution. Indeed, federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon suspended mediation efforts last week, saying that negotiations had made no progress.

He indicated that sending the dispute to binding arbitration was “not in the cards,” and that mediation would only resume “once the special mediator has clear evidence that both parties have sufficiently modified their respective positions.”

In apparent response to MacKinnon’s comments, Canada Post presented the union with a proposal on Sunday that it said included “movement on key issues,” as well as offers to bring greater flexibility to the corporation’s delivery model. That proposal was rejected on Monday, however, with the union claiming that Canada Post had not compromised on many of what it calls the employer’s “most severe demands.”

Last week, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and its provincial counterparts urged the Trudeau government “to immediately intervene and resolve this dispute, as we cannot allow Canadians to continue to pay the price of inaction.” They argued that “Canadian families, communities, and businesses need to see a resolution.”

On Monday, the CFIB joined the Chamber’s call for intervention, condemning the government for “sitting idly on the sidelines while small businesses are losing crucial revenue and sales due to circumstances outside of their control.”

Both Canada Post and the union say they are prepared to return to the bargaining table, but MacKinnon refuses to restart the mediation process. Given the growing losses and inconvenience — and the parties’ willingness to negotiate — Canadians have every reason to question the minister’s inaction.

The answer to that question likely lies in the reality that the government has painted itself into a corner on the labour relations front. Recall that earlier this year, it quickly used its authority to end nationwide rail strikes, as well as strikes at the ports of Vancouver and Montreal.

Each time it did so, the government was widely criticized for unfairly interfering in the collective bargaining process. Beyond that, federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh threatened to defeat the minority Liberal government, forcing an election the Liberals are desperately trying to avoid.

Given those facts, it is easy to understand the government’s hesitation to impose a back-to-work order in the postal strike — easy to understand, but hard to swallow.

The Canadian economy cannot be held hostage by an employer, a union and a government that put their respective interests ahead of the national interest. After three weeks, MacKinnon himself acknowledges that the parties are nowhere close to a negotiated agreement.

It’s time for the government to end the strike, by imposing binding arbitration on the parties.