Slow lettermail serive WITHIN Canada

[marschenegger]

The mail service within Canada has become inexplicably slow. Last month, I bought some items from a seller in Alberta. They took 10 days to get here to Ontario. Now I am waiting on a package from BC... 10 days and counting. Because I buy and sell small things that fit inside letters, I don't know if the shipping wait times for bigger items like parcels is any slower or faster. Registered mail and Xpresspost are getting through quickly, but regular mail has just slowed to a crawl. It used to be normal for mail sent to or leaving Ottawa to/from anywhere to arrive in a week.

Has anyone else noticed a slowdown in lettermail service in Canada? If so, what do you suppose is causing it? I'm inclined to point to the steady rise in the price of fuel which may be causing the posties to make fewer trips.

[pocomocomputing]

A postal strike within Canada may start May 1, 2011. A strike vote was taken this past Tuesday I believe. I do not know the results. The strike was being discussed in the eBay Canada forums and sellers discussed the very slow postal service in recent weeks. Most assume postal workers are slowing down service to show what a strike will be like.

From the CUPW SITE:

March 14, 2011 - 13:15

Urban Postal Unit Negotiations (2011) / Media Release
For Immediate Release

OTTAWA - After five months of negotiations with Canada Post, members of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers urban operations bargaining unit will be voting on the possibility of a strike. The union asked for conciliation in January, citing an impasse at the bargaining table that shows no sign of abating.

“It is difficult to negotiate when Canada Post’s demands for rollbacks stay on the table,” said Denis Lemelin, CUPW’s National President who is also acting as chief negotiator. “They have been going after our sick leave, our pensions, our retirees and our newest members. All this while they are making profits. Why can’t they invest some of these profits in their people and communities instead of machines?”

Canada Post’s recent $2-billion investment in new technologies and restructuring of the postal system has created problems nationwide, including in Winnipeg, Scarborough, Moncton, Laval and Saskatoon. Concerned postal workers have pointed out that much of the mess could have been avoided if upper management at Canada Post had been less fixated on change at all costs and taken the time to listen to workers on the ground.

The introduction of new work methods has resulted in unsafe working conditions, excessive amounts of forced overtime, and major problems with service to the public. The union has submitted proposals at the bargaining table to address these problems. But management’s demands for big concessions at the bargaining table has created a sense of determination among postal workers, who are describing this bargaining round as “the fight of our lives.”

The union is urging Canada Post to consider service expansion, including postal banking, as a way for the postal sector to stay relevant and maintain good jobs in the digital age. Many countries, including Brazil, New Zealand, France, Italy, India, Australia, Switzerland and the UK are rising to the challenge by making enhanced services available through their comprehensive postal networks.

“We have a historic opportunity here to improve the postal service and ensure that it remains a common good, working in everybody’s interests,” said Lemelin. “We hope that a strong strike vote from our members will force Canada Post to sit down and negotiate a reasonable settlement.”

If the vote is a yes, postal workers across the country could be out on strike towards the end of April.

[Bohemian]

Can't comment on the Canadian Post, but the Royal Mail is no better. For example, a Christmas card sent to Czech Republic, mid
December, delivered 10 weeks later. I get a lot of post and currently have one item "missing". This is an internal UK letter, sent 3
weeks ago, to me, from Kent.

[marschenegger]

Two weeks and I'm still waiting on that package from BC. Have had trouble in the past getting packages from the western US, though I assumed the problem was in the U.S.

I checked the Canada Post website and the labour problems are discussed. Of course, CP management are never going to admit the service has gone downhill. You just have to be a customer waiting on a package to know there's a problem. Here's the latest posting:

http://www.infopost.ca/en/2011/04/co...tion-extended/

"Conciliation Extended

Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) have agreed to extend the conciliation process, which was to expire on April 1, 2011. This new timeline means that the earliest date for a potential work disruption would be midnight on May 24, 2011.

We are pleased with this development as it will allow both parties to continue the collective bargaining process while maintaining service to customers. We remain optimistic that we will reach a negotiated settlement without a work disruption, just as we have done in each round of negotiations with CUPW since 1997."