CUPW Strike Rotates Back to Alberta, Ontario, Newfoundland and Labrador

For Immediate Release

Ottawa – Members of Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) from the Edmonton, Medicine Hat, Lethbridge and Calgary locals in Alberta walked off the job at 8 am (MT) this morning as part of CUPWs third week of rotating strikes.

In other rotating strike actions, last night also saw walkouts in Brantford, Fort Erie, Guelph, Simcoe, St. Catharines, and Welland at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time. Carbonear, Exploits Valley, Gander-Lewisporte, Deer Lake, St. Anthony, and Stephenville, NL went on strike at 12:01 a.m. Newfoundland Time.

“We are entering our third week of rotating strikes because management stills refuses to address the urgent health and safety issues that have left postal workers the most injured group of workers in the federal sector,” says Mike Palecek, CUPW National President. “We have a health and safety crisis at Canada Post. We've seen injury rates skyrocket. This has got to be fixed.”

CUPW has also called on a national overtime ban for both of its major bargaining units at Canada Post. Postal workers, no matter what their job at Canada Post, will not work more than an eight-hour day and not more than a 40-hour week. ‘’Overburdening, overtime and overwork are all major issues in this round of bargaining. Until Canada Post negotiators’ address it, we can solve it for ourselves in the meantime.” said CUPW National President Mike Palecek.

CUPW members are still without agreements for the Urban Postal Operations and Rural and Suburban Mail Carriers (RSMC) bargaining unit after almost a year of negotiations.

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For more information: CUPW Communications - [email protected], (613) 882-2742