As you know by now, we have regularly been saying that these negotiations are based on three principles: respect, equality and sharing the benefits of new technology. Let’s take a look at the last one: sharing the benefits of new technology, i.e. the Modern Post or postal transformation program.
Canada Post is currently investing two billion dollars in new technologies and working methods. That money is essentially our money. It’s the result of our daily, continuous work. Canada Post says this investment will result in annual savings of $250 million. What should it do with these savings? In our view, this money should be reinvested into expanding services for the public. It’s our money, so we are entitled to a say in how it’s spent. And our opinion must be heard.
Even More Services
We need to make the most of Canada Post’s extraordinary advantage: a network that delivers to each postal address and has more than 6,500 retail outlets across the country. Maximizing the use of this network is critical to maintaining our public and universal postal service.
That’s why we want Canada Post to “increase services to the public by increasing hours, products and services at retail counters, extending parcel delivery hours on evenings and weekends, expanding door‑to‑door delivery, and adding new services, including banking and financial services, bill payments, internet and initiating a same-day delivery service.”
Service Expansion – It Affects All of Us
The fight to expand services affects all of us: our jobs depend on it, no matter where we work. That’s why we’re focussing on service expansion and the need for Canada Post to pay closer attention to maintaining processing and delivery timelines, something its managers are currently not doing. If we want to maintain and create jobs in our communities and provide banking services, we need to make sure Canada Post puts user services at the heart of its corporate plan. Such services have been in place all over the world and they have been profitable.
Our Best Ally: The Public
In our fight to maintain and expand services, our best ally is the public. We need to build public awareness about the benefits of service expansion and the stakes involved in these negotiations. This is what we’ve been doing in recent months and must continue to do in the coming weeks if we want to obtain a collective agreement that protects the present and ensures the future.