The NDPs unanimously oppose any government intervention into a Canada Post strike that ground mail delivery to a halt on Friday. The last mail strike six years ago ended with back-to-work legislation after five weeks, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.New Democrats are “in full solidary” with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers, said party leader Jagmeet Singh in a statement released on Friday. “There should be no government intervention,” wrote Singh.“Stay out of this.”“Let the workers bargain their contract. It’s their right. Justin Trudeau has let workers down again and again.”“We will fight tooth and nail to defend their right to free and fair collective bargaining. Their fight is our fight.”The Union’s 55,000 members launched strike action Friday. Past job actions involved rotating 48-hour strikes at various mail distribution centers. Delivery of Old Age Security cheques and other federal benefits are not impacted by strike action under longstanding agreement with management..Postal workers give 72-hour strike notice, right before holiday season.Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon would not comment on whether cabinet would resort to legislation or executive order to end the strike.“Every day is a new day,” MacKinnon told reporters on Friday.“The issues at hand in the Canada Post negotiations are substantial. They are significant. There’s a lot of work to do.”MacKinnon on Tuesday for the fourth time in three months issued a Canada Labour Code order forcing transport unions into binding arbitration.“There is a limit to the economic self-destruction Canadians are willing to accept,” he said..WATCH: Postal workers mount legal action against feds, Canada Post over vax mandates.Parliament earlier legislated an end to postal disputes in 1997, 2011 and 2018. The last back-to-work bill ended 35 days of rotating strikes under threat of $100,000-a day fines.The Commons passed the 2018 bill by a vote of 166 to 43 with one prominent Liberal dissenter. Now-Attorney General Arif Virani was one of six Liberal MPs to vote against his government’s legislation.Bill C-89 An Act To Provide For The Resumption And Continuation Of Postal Services passed the Senate by a vote of 53 to 25 with several Liberal-appointed senators opposed.“No matter how you cut it, this legislation is taking away the union’s right to strike,” said then-Sen. Murray Sinclair.“There’s really no negative consequence for the employer. Keep that in mind.”The last back-to-work bill was opposed by Hassan Yussuff, then-president of the Canadian Labour Congress. Yussuff was appointed to the Senate in 2021.“Fundamentally back-to-work legislation is unconstitutional,” Yussuff said at the time of the 2018 postal strike.“Free collective bargaining is the essence of our democracy, and it’s the essence of how bargaining happens in this country, and the government needs to respect that in the most fundamental way.”
The NDPs unanimously oppose any government intervention into a Canada Post strike that ground mail delivery to a halt on Friday. The last mail strike six years ago ended with back-to-work legislation after five weeks, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.New Democrats are “in full solidary” with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers, said party leader Jagmeet Singh in a statement released on Friday. “There should be no government intervention,” wrote Singh.“Stay out of this.”“Let the workers bargain their contract. It’s their right. Justin Trudeau has let workers down again and again.”“We will fight tooth and nail to defend their right to free and fair collective bargaining. Their fight is our fight.”The Union’s 55,000 members launched strike action Friday. Past job actions involved rotating 48-hour strikes at various mail distribution centers. Delivery of Old Age Security cheques and other federal benefits are not impacted by strike action under longstanding agreement with management..Postal workers give 72-hour strike notice, right before holiday season.Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon would not comment on whether cabinet would resort to legislation or executive order to end the strike.“Every day is a new day,” MacKinnon told reporters on Friday.“The issues at hand in the Canada Post negotiations are substantial. They are significant. There’s a lot of work to do.”MacKinnon on Tuesday for the fourth time in three months issued a Canada Labour Code order forcing transport unions into binding arbitration.“There is a limit to the economic self-destruction Canadians are willing to accept,” he said..WATCH: Postal workers mount legal action against feds, Canada Post over vax mandates.Parliament earlier legislated an end to postal disputes in 1997, 2011 and 2018. The last back-to-work bill ended 35 days of rotating strikes under threat of $100,000-a day fines.The Commons passed the 2018 bill by a vote of 166 to 43 with one prominent Liberal dissenter. Now-Attorney General Arif Virani was one of six Liberal MPs to vote against his government’s legislation.Bill C-89 An Act To Provide For The Resumption And Continuation Of Postal Services passed the Senate by a vote of 53 to 25 with several Liberal-appointed senators opposed.“No matter how you cut it, this legislation is taking away the union’s right to strike,” said then-Sen. Murray Sinclair.“There’s really no negative consequence for the employer. Keep that in mind.”The last back-to-work bill was opposed by Hassan Yussuff, then-president of the Canadian Labour Congress. Yussuff was appointed to the Senate in 2021.“Fundamentally back-to-work legislation is unconstitutional,” Yussuff said at the time of the 2018 postal strike.“Free collective bargaining is the essence of our democracy, and it’s the essence of how bargaining happens in this country, and the government needs to respect that in the most fundamental way.”
