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“Instead of supporting good, stable jobs and protecting universal mail service for all Canadians, the government has chosen to side with Canada Post’s corporate plan — a plan that the union has long warned was designed to erode services, undermine workers, and pave the way for privatization,” CUPW spokesperson Emilie Tobin said in a media statement Friday.

The federal government says it accepts the recommendations made by an industrial inquiry commission set up earlier this year. The commission called for an expansion of community mailboxes and said Canada Post should be allowed to close some rural post offices.

Procurement Minister Joël Lightbound said Thursday that the government is responding to a revenue crisis at Canada Post driven by the decline in letter mail and the Crown corporation’s small share of the parcel market.

Canada Post says it’s losing as much as $10 million per day amid an extended period of labour uncertainty, and it has relied on federal bailouts to stay afloat in recent years.

CUPW, which represents 55,000 postal service workers, said it was caught off guard by Ottawa’s changes. It argues that Canada Post and the government are creating the conditions that drive down demand for its services.

Tobin said the strike is about defending a public service on which Canadians rely.

“We cannot stand by while the government and Canada Post work together to dismantle what generations of Canadians have built. CUPW members are united in fighting back to protect our jobs, our communities, and the future of Canada Post,” she said.

By hitting the picket lines, the union is ramping up the strike actions it has taken since May, which have included a ban on overtime work and, more recently, on delivering flyers.

Canada Post and CUPW have been in contract negotiations for nearly two years and have yet to reach an agreement on wages and other structural reforms to the postal service’s workforce.

Canada Post is completely shuttering operations during the strike, with a few exceptions — such as delivering pension cheques and social assistance like disability support payments.

No new mail will otherwise be accepted and Canada Post says items already in the postal service’s system will be held and delivered after the labour disruption ends.

 This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 26, 2025.