Canada Post Strike on Hold as Negotiations Continue
Canadian postal workers delayed a national strike set for 12:01 a.m. today to study the latest offer made by Canada Post, but said they will strike if an agreement is not reached soon."Canada Post made an offer yesterday," said Deborah Bourque, president of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers, in a statement issued early today. "It's not the basis for a tentative agreement but it is a sign that Canada Post may be taking negotiations seriously. We certainly hope so.
"We're going to give this one last shot."
Issues such as salary and cost-of-living allowance, workload and injury rates, benefits and severance pay reportedly are among the most contentious points remaining.
The CUPW represents 48,000 postal workers.
The Ottawa-based Canadian Federation of Independent Business released a survey yesterday stating that a postal strike would cause 73 percent of small and medium-sized businesses to lose revenue. In addition, 50 percent of businesses surveyed said a strike would cause them to permanently reduce their businesses' reliance on postal services in the future.
