Canada Post union talks resume amid questions around government intervention

After talks were put on hold due to labour unrest at Air Canada, Canada Post and its employee union are back to bargaining Wednesday. However, questions about whether the federal government will intervene also hang over the talks.

Thousands of Air Canada flight attendants walked off the job on Saturday after issuing a 72-hour strike notice, but almost immediately were directed to go back to work by the federal government. They disobeyed the order and remained on strike until a deal was reached early Tuesday morning.

Sussanne Skidmore, president of BC Federation of Labour, tells 1130 NewsRadio it doesn’t matter who’s behind the job action, Ottawa needs to take a step back and let the process play out.

“The stability that the public wants, the certainty that Canadians want comes from workers being paid well, being paid what they’re worth and being treated fairly. And the government not intervening and allowing the negotiating at the bargaining table to happen — it shouldn’t be happening at the cabinet table — and the same should be said for postal workers,” said Skidmore.

“When the government intervenes… It’s not in the best interest of the workers.”

Skidmore adds that when it comes to Air Canada negotiations, the federal government overstepped its boundaries and says it’s already involved in Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) talks.

“Regardless of what dispute it is, we know that Ottawa has been leaning on… [shutting] down our fundamental Charter Rights to free and fair collective bargaining in dispute after dispute. What I would say is this tilts the scales in the employer’s favour when the government intervenes, and it’s not in the best interest of the workers. The reality is this is an unconstitutional, unfair way for workers to get a collective agreement.”

When asked why the federal government seems to be so quick to use back-to-work orders, she laughed.

“I don’t actually know,” said Skidmore. “I was pretty shocked at how quick [the Air Canada] one came down. I can only hope they had some sober second thoughts on this because they learned these workers weren’t going to stand idly by and let government make the deal for them, that they have the right to make at the bargaining table.”

The union shot down the last offer from the crown corporation, which included a wage increase of around 13 per cent over four years.

Meanwhile, postal workers say a ban on overtime will continue and it’s unclear how long that will last — keeping in mind the busy holiday season is just months away.

The two sides have been in talks for over a year and a half.

—With files from Raynaldo Suarez