Canada Post, Canadian Union of Postal Workers continue negotiations

By David Hartwig

A nationwide overtime ban of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers continues as the union negotiates with Canada Post.

The legal strike action began May 23 after existing collective agreements between Canada Post and Canadian Union of Postal Workers ended May 22 (Linn’s, June 16, 2025, page 3).

After both parties submitted offers in the days following the start of the overtime ban, Canada Post requested May 30 that a vote take place on the final offers it presented to the union.

“After more than 18 months of collective bargaining, we believe the best hope of achieving freely negotiated collective agreements is an employee vote administered by the CIRB [Canada Industrial Relations Board] under section 108.1 of the Canada Labour Code,” Canada Post said in a May 30 press release.

On May 31, a bulletin from the Canadian Union of Postal Workers said: “A forced vote will not necessarily terminate the labour dispute, which should be the objective of Canada Post, which has expressed concerns about the severe impact of the labour dispute on it’s [sic] business.”

The union then invited Canada Post to submit their differences to a neutral third party through binding arbitration, and Canada Post rejected the invitation June 1.

“Arbitration would be long and complicated, likely lasting more than a year,” Canada Post said. “This would further extend the uncertainty experienced over the last 18 months and accelerate the company’s significant financial challenges. It would also continue to leave employees without a contract — and strip them of their right to vote on a new collective agreement.”

In a June 1 reply the union responded: “This refusal constitutes yet another demonstration that CPC [Canada Post Corporation] is not interested in a reasonable outcome to this round of negotiation. A forced vote may fail to end the labour conflict and risks further division, prolonging uncertainty for all parties. Arbitration would end the labour dispute immediately and create certainty for all Canadians.”

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers then filed an Unfair Labour Practice Complaint June 3. “The complaint stems from the employer bargaining directly with members, knowingly interfering with the Union’s exclusive bargaining rights and purposefully trying to discredit the reputation of the Union,” the union said, asking that the union have an “opportunity to rebut the employer’s misinformation on their platforms and order damages to the Union and members.”

Negotiations continued June 5 after the Minister of Jobs and Families called both parties back to the bargaining table. As of June 6 the Canadian Union of Postal Workers president Jan Simpson says that the negotiating committees continue to work on drafting terms for the arbitration process.

Canada Post provides details of its offers to the union online at canadapost.ca/offers, and provides negotiation updates online at www.canadapost.ca/update. The latest news from the Canadian Union of Postal Workers can be found online at www.cupw.ca/en/news---events.

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