Canada Post to end door to door delivery

[Hondaracer]

Don't get me wrong, I completely agree they are on the same level as bus drivers in providing a service that others may not want to or not feel comfortable doing and probably do deserve the wage they make. However, like I said I think it's more about the pensions than anything
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[iEatClams]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

Don't get me wrong, I completely agree they are on the same level as bus drivers in providing a service that others may not want to or not feel comfortable doing and probably do deserve the wage they make. However, like I said I think it's more about the pensions than anything
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The pensions for most government workers are usually a percentage % of their wages (pensionable earnings) and how long they have worked there. For the 70,000 employees that the company has, this unfunded liability means that taxpayers will be paying for this for many years down the road.

Again, as a caveat, from the history of my posts, I'm usually more left leaning and not anti-union and such, and I don't want everyone else to "live in poverty" but even I have to agree that some of the workers (data entry admin staff, mail sorting clerks) have 30+ vacation days along with awesome pensions) that are way above the market and unsustainable.

Personally, I don't think it's fair that private-sector employees have to pay for pensions and benefits that they don't get themselves.

PS, I think most corporations are fcking us all and private-sector employees have to work harder than before with less pay and benefits. Just the way things are going with global warming.

[iEatClams]

^ I think the way pensions work, it should be defined contribution where the individual is responsible for how it turns out, and this will avoid any unfunded liability issues in the future. Pensions should be something the individual saves on their own.

[Traum]

If I am not mistaken, the majority of public sector / government employee's pension is not a government liability -- at least not beyond the sense of employer contribution amounts. The asset-to-liability ratio is generally quite close to 1, meaning that any surpluses or unfunded liabilities are quite small. If a surplus is maintained, there is little pressure to increase member contribution amounts. If unfunded liabilities are found, the pension management corp take measures to reduce that unfunded liability, usually in the form of increasing contribution amounts. From what I know, unfunded liabilities are generally kept below 3% of the total liabilities, and I seem to recall that there are laws mandating how unfunded liabilities cannot exceed a certain and relatively low percentage.

But that is only the public sector / government employee pensions, and they are generally considered to be the gold standard. I do not know how non-public pensions work, and I suspect their requirements are probably not nearly as high as the public sector pensions.

[Traum]

Came upon this article on Rabble:

Canada Post is not on life support, it is being murdered | rabble.ca

I am not sure if I agree with many of the views and guesses expressed in the article, but I would assume that at a minimum, the facts listed in there are correct. Specifically, the Canada Post pension plan solvency deficit of $6.5B should be true, and the crown corp has almost always been turning a profit.

And that brings us to the question -- if Canada Post is operating in a healthy financial state, what reason does the government (or the Canada Post CEO) has to bring in such a drastic measure and end door-to-door delivery? The only reason they cited in the first place was a need to save money. When the crown corp has been making a reasonable profit, what need is there to slash service?

[Coren]

They want to make it look like its losing a lot of money so they can privatize it. After it happens, they'll be making unprecedented profits and rake in huge money

[Traum]

Fxxk this Canada Post cancelled delivery shxt. The whole scheme is clearly fxxked up, especially right at the very top:

Canada Post's Deepak Chopra says seniors want exercise from picking up mail - Politics - CBC News

[Coren]

conversion put on hold

Canada Post is suspending the conversion of door-to-door delivery to community mailboxes.

In a news release issued late Monday, Canada Post spokeswoman Anick Losier said the corporation will work "collaboratively" with the government of Canada to determine the best path forward given the challenges in the postal system.

"Efforts are now underway to place the comprehensive program on hold in an orderly fashion," Losier said in the release. "This involves roughly 460,000 addresses across the country which are currently in the process to be converted to community mailboxes."

Outgoing Transport Minister Lisa Raitt, whose portfolio includes Canada Post, said the corporation makes decisions independent of government.

'Arm's-length Crown corporation'

"They are an arm's-length Crown corporation and take their own operational decisions," Raitt told CBC News. "But they also have a statutory obligation to operate self-sufficiently, and if they are not then I expect they will be held accountable."

Canadian Union of Postal Workers national president Mike Palecek said members are "ecstatic" about the news.

"We've been fighting this campaign for a year and a half, and we're glad they finally put a halt to this disastrous program," he told CBC News. "It's time to talk about the future of Canada Post, about restoring service to those who have lost it, and about having a public mandate review of Canada Post so we can look at alternatives to these cuts."

Palecek said Canada Post should be looking at expanding services, such as having banking and financial services in post offices. He said it appears that the incoming Liberal government is following up on an election campaign promise to put an immediate moratorium on the cuts and to carry out a study.

The Liberal platform promised to ensure "high quality service at a reasonable price to Canadians, no matter where they live."

"We succeeded in making this a major election issue and making sure that people understood exactly who it was and is to blame, and that's Stephen Harper and the Conservative government," Palecek said. "I think the Canadian public spoke loudly and clearly last week by changing the government."

Palecek said the CUPW will keep up pressure to restore delivery to the roughly one million addresses that have been converted to community mailbox service since the program began 10 months ago.

The Liberal Party declined to comment on the Canada Post announcement.

Canada Post halts controversial community mailbox program - Politics - CBC News

[l2_narain]

Canada Post is going the attrition route to reduce their workforce. They are getting rid of their 'surge causal' pool, and only filling more PT (from the FT/casual pool) and less FT. They are also reducing the number of hours people can work (ie. Causal/PT shift was 6 hours; now 4).

The PT positions have a schedule while the casual pool do not have a schedule but must accept over 50% of the call out period to maintain their status. The casual do not have raises unless the collective agreement allows them to. They are also not allowed to receive OT. The corporation reported loses over the last couple of quarters to give no wiggle room for negotiations with the union.

I don't think they are going to strike in February since the union seems to be okay with this and the only people getting screwed over is the causal pool.

[Mr.HappySilp]

I wish the delivery service here can be as good as in China. Basically you order something it gets ship to you within days. Also the delivery guy calls you before they are coming and if you are not at home they either come back later or you can pick up the package at their office. Since Online shopping is so popular in China there are literally postal office every few blocks. Also you can ship pretty much anything (even fruits, veggies, snacks, eggs). And most of the online stores don't charge shipping fees.

[Super Dipper]

Originally Posted by l2_narain

Canada Post is going the attrition route to reduce their workforce. They are getting rid of their 'surge causal' pool, and only filling more PT (from the FT/casual pool) and less FT. They are also reducing the number of hours people can work (ie. Causal/PT shift was 6 hours; now 4).

The PT positions have a schedule while the casual pool do not have a schedule but must accept over 50% of the call out period to maintain their status. The casual do not have raises unless the collective agreement allows them to. They are also not allowed to receive OT. The corporation reported loses over the last couple of quarters to give no wiggle room for negotiations with the union.

I don't think they are going to strike in February since the union seems to be okay with this and the only people getting screwed over is the causal pool.

Casual hires have not been haulted. In fact, it's the exact opposite. They are hiring more casual or temp employees so they don't have to fill part time and full time vacancies.

Casual employees are entitled to overtime. They need to fulfill there extended hours and should there be no full time employees available or interested in doing the work, the ot can be offered to the casuals.

Group 2 cupw members (letter carriers, msc drivers etc) are entitled to ot should they work past the regular 8hr day. The rules are slightly different for group 1 workers (inside ops) but still can be eligible.

Also temp employees need to commit to 5week blocks of work at a time. That falls under group 2 workers. I can't remember the rules for group 1, but similar rules apply.

And with all union workplaces, there is always the chance of specific union locals making there own local agreements which can then change everything, lol.

Where did you happen to get your information? Just curious.