Canada Post has pledged it will not cut any jobs at its Olds outlet as a result of the corporation consolidating its mail sorting activities in larger centres, a Canada Post spokesman said.
This declaration from the corporation was made as a result of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers claiming that in the corporation's bid to introduce more efficiency into its operations throughout Canada, many jobs and postal outlets will be lost.
“What they're doing is they're essentially taking that (local) mail now and they're shipping it to (larger centres) … and our concern is not only will it cost jobs in those rural communities, it will also cause delays in service. Certainly we won't get overnight service like people generally get,” said Gord Fischer, national director of the prairie region for the Canadian Union of Postal Workers.
John Caines, a spokesperson for Canada Post, denied that jobs will be lost and said customers won't notice any changes in delivery service compared to current service levels because local trucks that were picking up mail in larger centres destined for delivery in smaller centres will still be on the road. They will just be making a trip into the larger centres such as Calgary and Edmonton and bringing mail back.
Caines said the delivery standards that Canada Post has – two business days for delivery of local mail, three days for mail within Alberta and four days for inter-provincial mail – will continue to be maintained. Sorting machines in larger centres such as Edmonton and Calgary can sort about 35,000 pieces of mail per hour. All mail originating in Olds is sorted in Red Deer.
Caines said a recent Conference Board of Canada report concluded that Canada Post is facing a $1-billion deficit by 2020. Caines said since the corporation's mail volume has dropped by one billion pieces since 2006, and 30 per cent of that drop happened in 2012, changes need to be made.
“Our volumes are in such deep decline now that we have to find a better way to run our business. There's quite a pattern that has been established, and we have to find a way to become more cost effective and efficient at the same time,” he said.
Fischer said the union is concerned that with the move of mail to larger sorting centres, less work will be available to workers in rural post offices.
“That's one of the biggest concerns we have right now; we'd like to keep the jobs in the rural area, but we'd also like to keep the service the same. The mail can be slow enough now, without slowing it down more,” he said.
Fischer said the union has long maintained that services, especially in rural areas, should be expanded, rather than cut.
“In the past, that's where we've seen service cuts. We think it's important to have a public postal service that serves everyone in Canada,” Fischer said.
Due to job security at Canada Post, no jobs will be lost as a result of the most recent changes, Caines said.
But when people leave or retire, there is a good chance that their position won't be filled.
The corporation is looking for public feedback on the changes. People can go to www.canadapost.ca and click on The Future of Canada Post tab.
“We're asking to go on, give us their opinion on what the future of Canada Post looks like in their eyes. That's very important to us. We know there's going to be different ideas from different people, but we're looking for all kinds of feedback so we can form the Canada Post of the future,” Caines said.
