Canada Post on Strike

[The Observer]

There was a time when a postal strike seemed akin to a Third World War; when unionized postal workers defied the public and brought the government to its knees. There was a time when postal union bosses were controversial household names — Joe Davidson and Jean-Claude Parrot — because they knew their members could always picket longer than Canadians could go without their daily mail.

 

There was a time.

 

But today, as another postal strike looms, reaction is muted.

 

The biggest question for many this time is not ‘Will we cope?’ but rather ‘Will we notice?’

 

“Every possible need for sending or receiving anything at the moment can be met online, except for physical items,” said Dan Zen, professor of interactive multimedia at Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning. “It is to the point now that I have no idea how much stamps cost. I never go to the post office. I never mail anything.”

 

Electronic substitution, the digitizing and sending of information — letters, cards and invitations; music, movies and photographs; banking, catalogues and advertisements — through a computer, has destroyed the importance of the post office.

 

“Consumers have, by and large, deserted them. Who the hell writes letters today? We do email and texting,” said Ian Lee, a professor at Carleton University’s Sprott School of Business whose PhD thesis was on the postal service.

 

“They are a physical company in a world that is increasingly virtual and electronic. They are competing against a technology that they cannot beat. The post office goes on strike, it is expensive, it’s slow. So it has all the disadvantages but no real advantages in a digital world.

 

“We are witnessing the long-term decline and eventual death of the post office.”

 

Despite that kind of doom and gloom, there are those who still rely on the mail and are now stressing over a pending interruption of service.

 

“There certainly is still a pronounced need,” said Catherine Swift, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, an advocacy group for small and medium-sized businesses.

 

A survey of her members found a postal strike increases the operating costs of a business by an average of $250 a day from alternate arrangements for shipping and delivery and lost revenue.

 

http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/06/01/canada-post-strike-will-we-even-notice/

 

Back-to-work legislation: Should Ottawa force Canada Post employees back to work?

June 17, 2011 10:52 AM | Read 46 comments46

By Community Team

With Air Canada service returning to normal after a three-day strike, the government is now turning its attention to the Canada Post lockout.

 

A Canada Post worker demonstrates outside an Ottawa sorting facility on June 15. Around 48,000 postal workers are locked out across Canada. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press) )Labour Minister Lisa Raitt is expected to introduce back-to-work legislation for Canada Post in the House on Monday.

 

The NDP is strongly opposed to the bill and has promised to slow any debate on it.

 

"I think we're seeing record speed here in the case of the government," said NDP Leader Jack Layton. "And I think it indicates a bias on the side of the employer."

 

NDP labour critic Yvon Godin said it's "dangerous" for the government to get involved.

 

"If the government says we're sending a clear message out to Canadians that we have no choice because our mandate is to focus on the economic recovery, well brace yourselves everyone," Godin warned MPs. "The government won't stop with Air Canada and Canada Post. It's simply the start of the way the government will act in the future."

 

The Liberals agreed with the Opposition on the bill.

 

"This has been the single biggest sucker-punch that organized labour has received in years," Liberal labour critic Roger Cuzner said.

 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/yourcommunity/2011/06/back-to-work-legislation-should-ottawa-force-canada-post-employees-back-to-work.html

 

Your thoughts on this?

 

Personally, a postal strike won't affect me. I receive direct deposit for any money I make, or if someone gives me a cheque, they give it to me in person. So, I just have to walk to my local bank.

 

I feel that postal workers shouldn't be forced to go back to work. Even though they are federal (public sector) employees, they should receive the same type of treatment regular employees would get. That means the ability to strike without being forced to go back to work.

[Sir_Squab]

I think it's wrong on general principles to force people to go back to work from striking. However, I'd also be in favour of individual strikers being able to go back to work if they want or to hire new people if possible. I dunno, I guess a have a "laissez faire" attitude towards strike, aka leave it alone. (Except for the parties directly involved of course.) Doesn't really affect me tho.

[sees_all1]

I don't think government workers should be allowed to strike. Their wages and benefits may be less than the private sector, but the tradeoff is the stability they get from the government (which, up until recently is why I think government bonds should pay less than other bonds - theoretically they're more stable).

 

But what do I know, I'm a right-wing right-to-work nut job.

[Giordano]

If there's one thing I hate is when people don't get credit for their work.

 

If the postal people get ignored their pay/benefits/etc for delivering the nation's mail, they have every right to 'remind' the higher-ups of their importance.

[Kimberly]

If there's one thing I hate is when people don't get credit for their work.

 

If the postal people get ignored their pay/benefits/etc for delivering the nation's mail, they have every right to 'remind' the higher-ups of their importance.

 

I agree with the principle but as the first article points out, they aren't exactly helping themselves if they're highlighting how expendable they by striking.

[Sbrideau]

Would affect me in the sense that I get my bills by mail, but then again today Telus sent me my new bill by txt message on my phone. The only thing is that I won't know how much I owe my new ISP since I never paid anything to them yet.

 

Appart from that let them stay on strike, but they are already getting paid quite a lot ($23/h+), I don't know why they whine.

[Furah]

As someone who works in the courier business something like this would be of benefit to me as far as working hours goes.

[RpgGamer]

We definitely need a postal service. Perhaps, not every day...but atleast once a week. Stuff needs to get shipped. How else would I get my exotic foreign sex toys yugioh cards from Wisconsin?

[All_Is_Great]

We definitely need a postal service. Perhaps, not every day...but atleast once a week. Stuff needs to get shipped. How else would I get my exotic foreign sex toys yugioh cards from Wisconsin?

 

:lol: :lol:

 

Wisconsin yugioh dealers are scammers :-$

Buy them from Minnesota.

[Furah]

We definitely need a postal service. Perhaps, not every day...but atleast once a week. Stuff needs to get shipped. How else would I get my exotic foreign sex toys yugioh cards from Wisconsin?

Go couriers, we get it to you faster and if something is lost we replace it instead of saying "Tough [cabbage], kid."

[i_love_burritos]

I have a new found respect for Canadians.

 

EDIT:

 

Oh I though this was about the hockey riots. Pfffft, postal strike ? [kitties].

[Gandorf61]

Only annoying thing is in British Columbia we are in the midst of having a mail in vote for a referendum deciding whether to keep the Harmonized Sales Tax. The deadline is July 22nd but if the strike were to last a few weeks this could really mess it all up. :/

[Kaida23]

I don't know about other Canadians, but personally I'm getting pretty fed up with the various divisions of PSAC going on strike/threatening to strike/etc... Government employees get better benefits, pensions, and salaries than most people working in the private sector (especially here in Ottawa), so I don't know why they're constantly fighting for more. Especially when you consider that many functions of the various branches of government can be performed by companies in the private sector more efficiently, and for less cost.

 

I think Canada Post needs to reset it's time machine from 1960 to 2011 and realize that they are no longer the only way for people to get information. They also need to take a long, hard look at the economy in this country and realize how fortunate they are to have jobs at all, let alone government jobs that aren't bilingual (a rarity in itself in Canada) with full benefits.

[Ginger_Warrior]

I support the principle that in a free economy, workers have a right to negotiate their work and paying conditions, and have the right to withdraw their labour if no agreement can be found.

[Range_This11]

Every worker no matter their occupation has a right to strike. Whether your employer is a business man or the government, they are taking hours of your life away and giving you money in return. To me, if you are not able to negotiate your wage, you are at best an indentured servant and at worst a slave.

[Kimberly]

Every worker no matter their occupation has a right to strike. Whether your employer is a business man or the government, they are taking hours of your life away and giving you money in return. To me, if you are not able to negotiate your wage, you are at best an indentured servant and at worst a slave.

 

Everyone agrees to work for the salaries/benefits presented to them when they accept the job. The only time I see striking as acceptable is when they threaten to lower that agreed upon amount or vastly change the burden of work. And even then, striking isn't all that smart when you have hordes of people willing to rush in behind you to be those 'indentured servants'. Postal work is hardly skilled labor that requires specialized people to do it.

 

I know it can be stressful working in a profession where everyone is trying to do more with less, like nursing. But I honestly think that's hardly the case here given that they're unionized. I'd be willing to bet half of them are striking just because.

[Range_This11]

Yes, they agree with the wage or salary when they are given the job but it should be a constant negotiation. I believe that if a business (or government for that matter) is failing or cannot afford to pay their employees enough, the employees' wage should go down. I'm not arguing that companies should go bankrupt paying their employees, but eliminating the right to strike takes away any and all power a worker has. Sure, employers provide employees with a wage and the means to survive, but the employees also provide the business owners with a more than comfortable life and the assurance that the business owner's company will run smoothly. It is a two-way street; each are providing the other a service.

 

Without the ability to negotiate your wage, you are powerless in the workplace. And yes, I realize you also have the right to leave your job and that someone that is willing to accept a lower wage will likely step in, but where does it end? What will happen when the lower-wage workers decide their time and skills are worth more and decide to strike? They will be replaced with workers that will accept less still and the cycle continues. As slippery-slopish as that argument may be, I believe it to be true.

 

That being said, I have absolutely no idea if the Canada Post workers have any weight to their strike. I'm just arguing on principle here.

[The_Fray]

I don't know about other Canadians, but personally I'm getting pretty fed up with the various divisions of PSAC going on strike/threatening to strike/etc... Government employees get better benefits, pensions, and salaries than most people working in the private sector (especially here in Ottawa), so I don't know why they're constantly fighting for more. Especially when you consider that many functions of the various branches of government can be performed by companies in the private sector more efficiently, and for less cost.

 

I think Canada Post needs to reset it's time machine from 1960 to 2011 and realize that they are no longer the only way for people to get information. They also need to take a long, hard look at the economy in this country and realize how fortunate they are to have jobs at all, let alone government jobs that aren't bilingual (a rarity in itself in Canada) with full benefits.

I agree with you, the Postal Service employees get a decent enough wage with reasonable enough hours. They are paid well above the minimum wage for job that requires few skills and little to no education.

 

No I do not agree with forcing them back to work, but Imo the Canadian government should hold strong and not set a poor precedence by folding to unionized government workers. I am sorry but $26/hour coming out of taxpayer money to support these government employees is a bit much, which I might at is more than double the minimum wage.

[Ginger_Warrior]

I'm not actually aware of what the postal workers are striking over. The original quote doesn't really explain. However, I still support the principle; wages are consantly being renegotiated depending on company profits, performance targets and inflation, see I don't see how accepting a specific wage is a point at all really. Also, working conditions and pensions are in a constant state of change too, it's like pinning jelly to the wall.

 

Fact is, wages and conditions change regardless of any priorly expressed agreement, and if these deteriorate, workers absolutely have a right to protest.

[Kimberly]

Yes, they agree with the wage or salary when they are given the job but it should be a constant negotiation.

 

Why, if the environment/work load/cost of living is the same?

 

Workers have no power in the workplace; the only thing that ever changed that (unions) was abused until it pretty much was forced out of the workplace thanks to big corporations not wanting to take that threat.

[Range_This11]

The cost of living is not static.

 

I completely agree with what Ginger Warrior said. Pay should be based on how much the company is making and performance evaluations. Most of the workers are middle class or lower consumers--the backbone of modern societies. They do all the work, purchase all the goods, and drive the economy forward. I see no reason why they should not be compensated for their services.

[Kimberly]

The cost of living is not static.

 

Obviously. Which is why they'd have the right to strike if their wage wasn't adjusted to meet an increase. But it's not like if cost of living went down, people would suddenly take less pay...

 

Pay should be based on how much the company is making and performance evaluations. Most of the workers are middle class or lower consumers--the backbone of modern societies.

 

Such an argument would surely cripple government workers when their nation is in deficit. Isn't such a blanket philosophy impractical?

[Range_This11]

Pay should be based on how much the company is making and performance evaluations. Most of the workers are middle class or lower consumers--the backbone of modern societies.

 

Such an argument would surely cripple government workers when their nation is in deficit. Isn't such a blanket philosophy impractical?

Obviously those two criteria would not be the only determining factors. It was blanket-like because I don't feel like writing an essay again only to have one sentence cherry picked and quoted.

 

The same argument I made earlier about the degradation of pay by replacing striking workers with those that will accept a lower wage reciprocally applies here as well. I don't think that workers should be overcompensated. After all, it's the business owners who are taking the risk of starting companies and it's the business owners who take the most damage if the company fails. They should be adequately compensated for their risks and I believe they are. But it is important that the business owners and government recognize the value of a thriving middle class. The middle class cannot thrive unless they are paid well. It's that simple.

[Ginger_Warrior]

So managers in local government have no responsiblity to make sure their workers are being paid fairly?

 

Seems disingenuous to blame public sector workers for basically being ripped off. When not come out and just say you hate local government?

[Kaida23]

state union pay raises = tax powers money.

 

You dont deserve the right to band together and demand a larger chunk of the tax dollars, if you wanna strike go to the private side. Governments overpay their employees compared to similar jobs on the private side anyways.

Exactly. Where do these people think the government gets the money for these ridiculous salaries? Magic faeries? The more money the government pays out, the more it has to take in, so the higher our taxes go -- which, kind of ironically, even the government workers have to pay so then they demand more money to make up for the extra taxes they now have to pay and it just goes round and round. :wall:

 

So managers in local government have no responsiblity to make sure their workers are being paid fairly?

 

Seems disingenuous to blame public sector workers for basically being ripped off. When not come out and just say you hate local government?

Given how inept and corrupt the City Council in Ottawa is, I do hate my local government. :angry: