Canada Orders Postal Workers Back to Job After Strike
(Bloomberg) — The Canadian government asked an independent labor board to order 55,000 Canada Post Corp. workers back to the job, a move that’s expected to end a strike that disrupted mail service for nearly a month during the busy holiday season.
Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon announced Friday he has referred the matter to the Canada Industrial Relations Board. He’s asked the board — if it agrees the parties are at an impasse — to order the postal service and workers to resume operations and to extend their existing contracts until May 22.
“Canadians are rightfully fed up,” MacKinnon said at a news conference. “Canadians from coast to coast to coast, small businesses, as well as those living in remote regions and in Indigenous communities, have suffered greatly.”
The minister also announced he would establish an industrial inquiry commission led by lawyer William Kaplan. The commission will examine the structural issues at play in the labor dispute and submit a report by May 15 that will clarify parties’ bargaining rights and provide a potential “path forward” for new contracts, MacKinnon said.
“The inquiry will have a broad scope as it will examine the entire structure of Canada Post from both a customer and business model standpoint, considering the challenging business environment now facing Canada Post,” the labor minister said.
This is the third time the government has asked the CIRB to intervene in a labor dispute since August. MacKinnon said he hopes the independent board will reach its conclusions quickly, and if it agrees with his observations, it could order the resumption of mail delivery as early as next week.
Members of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers walked out on Nov. 15, halting mail delivery
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