Local CUPW workers ready to defy back-to-work order

By Lethbridge Herald on December 16, 2024.

Cole Morgan, chief shop steward of Canadian Union of Postal Workers Local 770, stands on the picket line with other union members on Monday in front of the downtown Post Office. Herald photo by Toyin Obatusin

Toyin Obatusin – LETHBRIDGE HERALD – Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Canada’s postal workers have been ordered by the Canada Industrial Relations Board to get back on the job starting today after spending more than four weeks on strike.

But whether Lethbridge workers join others among the 55,000 striking Canadian Union of Postal Workers, is not yet known.

Cole Morgan, chief shop steward of Canadian Union of Postal Workers Local 770, said Monday when asked if local Canada Post employees would be back on the job today, “that is a possibility, but that remains to be seen. We’re kind of waiting to see what the leadership has to say, but a lot of members are ready to defy if they need to.”

After two days of deliberations, the CIRB ordered employees to return to work and postal operations to begin to resume at 8 a.m. local time today.

 Canada Post is warning Lethbridge mail recipients of delays due to parcels that have not been delivered since the beginning of the strike. 

There will be no receiving or pick-up of new products until Thursday if strikers go back to work. 

Postal workers gathered in front of the downtown post office on Monday still awaiting a response from the CUPW national executive board, with a lot of unhappiness, said Morgan.

Canada Post in a media statement Monday afternoon said its focus is on stabilizing operations “to return reliable service to Canadians and businesses.”

It stated that Canada Post on a first-in, first-out basis will start working through mail and parcels that have been in the system since the strike began on Nov. 15. 

There will be no service guarantees as the corporation ramps up service and Canadians are being told they should expect delays for the rest of this month and into January.

The service will start accepting new international mail on Dec. 23.

Collective agreements between Canada Post and CUPW for the rural and suburban mail carriers unit expired on Dec. 31, 2023 and on Jan. 31 for the urban unit.

On Monday, CUPW on its website called the CIRB decision “disappointing to say the least for CUPW and all of our members who made sacrifices to fight for what is right and our rights to negotiate improvements to our working conditions. CUPW will still challenge the constitutionality and the current application of section 107 by the Minister of Labour.

Those challenges will be heard by the CIRB on Jan. 13-14.