CUPW is urging its roughly 55,000 members to vote against the offer
The federal government is forcing Canada Post’s workers to vote on an employment contract that the Crown corporation said is its final offer.
“After 18 months of negotiation, over 200 meetings between the parties, 33 days of strike and lockout in the fall, and ongoing strain placed on Canada’s small businesses and communities, it is in the public interest that the membership of CUPW (Canadian Union of Postal Workers) has the opportunity to vote on Canada Post’s last offers,” Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu said on X.
She said she is using her authority under section 108.1(1) of the Canada Labour Code to force the union representing Canada Post’s workers to vote on the offer made on May 28.
Canada Post lauded the decision, but the union condemned it while urging its roughly 55,000 members to vote against the offer.
“Canada Post and the government are colluding to take away the rights of workers to freely and fairly bargain collective agreements,” CUPW said in a statement. “Forced deals will not achieve labour peace. This also sends a signal to other employers and the labour movement about how far this government will go to trample on the rights of workers.”
Canada Post said the decision gives employees the “opportunity to have a voice and vote on a new collective agreement.”
Union members, during collective bargaining, are usually asked to vote once the union and the employer reach a tentative agreement. In this case, CUPW and Canada Post haven’t been able to reach an agreement on a new contract for the past 18 months.
“In a case like this, where the union is refusing to hold a ratification vote, it does provide a great opportunity for the employees to say, yes, this is what we want, or no, it’s not what we want,” Sundeep Gokhale, a partner at Toronto-based law firm Sherrard Kuzz LLP, said. “It’s a litmus test to see whether a majority of the employees would accept it.”
He said the government has long held the power to require unionized workers to vote on a contract, but it’s not been used often.
In 2008, Rona Ambrose, then minister of labour, directed Amalgamated Transit Union members to vote on a contract offered by the City of Ottawa. The members overwhelmingly rejected the offer. The strike was later settled and all outstanding issues were sent to binding arbitration.
Gokhale said if workers decide to vote against Canada Post’s latest offer, the parties will be left in the “exact same position” as they are in right now.
“The union has a lot to gain potentially if the vote is unsuccessful because they can go back to Canada Post and say, We told you this wasn’t going to be ratified,’” he said. “On the flip side, if it is successful, the union looks like they’re not truly connected to their membership.”
Canada Post on May 28 said its final offer protects “what’s most important to employees while making important enhancements that build on the company’s most recent offers.”
CUPW, however, said the offer “outright ignored our positions” on the big issues.
“Canada Post says this was its final offer,” CUPW said back then. “But this fight is far from over.”
Since 2018, Canada Post has reported more than $3 billion in losses before tax and has said it will post another “significant loss” for 2024. The losses have compelled it to tap its cash reserves in recent years.
In early 2025, the federal government said it would give Canada Post about $1 billion in repayable funding to prevent it from going bankrupt. But the crown corporation said it needs to make structural changes in order for it to survive in the long run.
