Canada Post Woes (merged)

[George Wallace]

Yes.  Canada Post is striving to move into the realm of electronic media, for delivery of bills, secure banking, online shopping, etc.  I highly doubt that they will actually find a niche on the internet with all of the services that are already provided by business and banks.  I see them giving up their 'bread and butter' in search of something that so many others have already started to provide and have mastered.  It would seem that Canada Post actually has a "Death Wish".

 

[The Bread Guy]

Latest on the negotiations ...

Tomorrow could mark the start of lockouts for postal workers across the country.

Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers WERE working towards a 30 day cooling down period that would keep the mail moving and allow negotiations to continue.

However, the union rejected the offer from the national mail service because of a condition of binding arbitration in the event that the two sides don't reach an agreement.

CUP-W says that condition would mean giving up its right to discuss a deal ...

Meanwhile, Team Blue on an end to door-to-door, December 2013:

... Transport Minister Lisa Raitt is defending the decision.

Raitt, the minister responsible for the Crown corporation, says Canadians are sending less mail than ever, leaving Canada Post with some tough financial decisions in order to combat a steep decline in revenues.

She says a typical Canadian household buys only one to two dozen stamps a year, and mail volumes continue to plummet, having fallen nearly 25 per cent per household since 2008.

“The government of Canada supports Canada Post in its efforts to fulfil its mandate of operating on a self-sustaining financial basis in order to protect taxpayers, while modernizing its business and aligning postal services with the choices of Canadians,” Raitt said in a statement ...

Team Blue on an end to door-to-door, July 2016:

One step further (from a leadership contender) ...

A Conservative leadership candidate has come out in favour of privatizing Canada Post as the Crown corporation faces an ongoing labour dispute.

It's the latest headline-grabbing move from veteran Quebec MP Maxime Bernier, whose campaign has pushed for a dismantling of what he sees as big government monopolies.

Bernier said in a release Friday that he is concerned Canadians will be denied services because of the dispute between Canada Post and its union, which would hurt small and medium-sized businesses, and others who rely on the service ...

 

[PuckChaser]

Union doesn't want binding arbitration because they don't believe they have a case for anything they want. If they had one, they wouldn't be afraid of arbitration. It's not about bargaining rights, they want to squeeze blood out of a stone.

 

[mariomike]

"Canadians are sending less mail than ever...|

 

[George Wallace]

"Canadians are sending less mail than ever...|

Of course they are.  Canada Post has been putting itself out of business since the 1980's when they started cutting service and staff.  They are a "Service Orientated" business that is providing less and less service.  The customer is not going to put up with poor service, and will find better service elsewhere.

Once upon a time, many years ago, the mail was delivered to your door six days a week.  That was cut back to save dollars.  It had little affect on their service, but it proved to those in the Ivory Towers that saving a buck to become profitable was doable.  Unfortunately, those in the Ivory Towers did not do so well over the next four or five decades when they cut staff and service with their new brain storming ideas.  Centralized sorting saved some dollars, but degraded service.  The Super Boxes, permitted the downsizing in Staff (Letter Carriers) and provided some immediate profits, but degraded service and required the hiring of Contractors.  The current plan to stop ALL home delivery further cuts their "service" to their customers.  Their venturing into the electronic area of deliver is questionable, as that puts them in direct competition with other companies and networks that have been long established, efficient and profitable.  The demise of Canada Post has been a long self inflicted process of mismanagement over several decades.  Both the UNION and the Mandarins at Canada Post hold equal blame for their demise.
 

 

[Fishbone Jones]

And it's not just carriers. Cutbacks happened all over the place. We had our own sorting plant here. CanPost decided to move it to London. Prior to the move I could send a letter across town the next day if I put it in the box in the morning. Now it takes over a week, or more, to get a letter sent across the street. My mail now gets picked up, partially processed locally, sent to London, sorted and sent back here for delivery. We still have the material infrastructure to do it here, but no way. It's why people here are using couriers or email. CanPost is very, very close to being redundant and not worthy of existing at all.

 

[George Wallace]

And it's not just carriers. Cutbacks happened all over the place. We had our own sorting plant here. CanPost decided to move it to London. Prior to the move I could send a letter across town the next day if I put it in the box in the morning. Now it takes over a week, or more, to get a letter sent across the street. My mail now gets picked up, partially processed locally, sent to London, sorted and sent back here for delivery. We still have the material infrastructure to do it here, but no way. It's why people here are using couriers or email. CanPost is very, very close to being redundant and not worthy of existing at all.

That was happening in the Mid '80's.  I sent a postcard home to Oromocto from Germany the day I was returning, to see who would get home first.  The postcard took three days to travel in regular Post from Germany to my door in Oromocto.  A month or so later, my mother in Fredericton, appox. 20 km away, sent me a birthday card.  It was picked up in Fredericton, put on a truck and driven past my house in Oromocto to Saint John, sorted and then trucked back to Oromocto for deliver to the door.  It took over seven days, more than twice the time a card from half way around the world, to go that 20 km.

In more recent news, Canada Post is going to close its large plant on Industrial Rd in Ottawa, and send all of Ottawa's mail to Montreal for sorting.  A city of nearly 1 million people is sending all its mail two hours down the road to another province and city to be sorted.  If that does not defy any logic, then nothing does.  Proof that people with Degrees, but no experience, making these decisions are destroying the country....In this case, Canada Post.

 

[runormal]

And it's not just carriers. Cutbacks happened all over the place. We had our own sorting plant here. CanPost decided to move it to London. Prior to the move I could send a letter across town the next day if I put it in the box in the morning. Now it takes over a week, or more, to get a letter sent across the street. My mail now gets picked up, partially processed locally, sent to London, sorted and sent back here for delivery. We still have the material infrastructure to do it here, but no way. It's why people here are using couriers or email. CanPost is very, very close to being redundant and not worthy of existing at all.

See this must be where the generational gap exists.

Why would anyone mail a letter these days? You can send it instantly by email, furthermore it is free and if you really want you can put a read receipt on it.

The only time I see people in my age group sending letters are for wedding invitations..

I do enjoy the odd card that I receive from my sister, but if it costs a dollar to ship it, plus the 3-4 dollars for a card what is the point?

The only time in the past 5 years I can remember mailing anything was university transcripts and the odd letter to my ex (girlfriend at the time) while I was on course because it was "fun" and was a good way to pass the time..

In more recent news, Canada Post is going to close its large plant on Industrial Rd in Ottawa, and send all of Ottawa's mail to Montreal for sorting.  A city of nearly 1 million people is sending all its mail two hours down the road to another province and city to be sorted.  If that does not defy any logic, then nothing does.  Proof that people with Degrees, but no experience, making these decisions are destroying the country....In this case, Canada Post.

I am rather surprised by this.. I'll have to do more research on this.

 

[cavalryman]

I am rather surprised by this.. I'll have to do more research on this.

Here you go
http://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/canada-post-to-cut-ottawa-jobs-move-processing-to-montreal-1.1819970

It's from 2 years ago, so how valid that remains, I don't know.

Edited to add that my google-fu hasn't found anything more recent than 2014 on this

 

[Fishbone Jones]

See this must be where the generational gap exists.

Why would anyone mail a letter these days? You can send it instantly by email, furthermore it is free and if you really want you can put a read receipt on it.

The only time I see people in my age group sending letters are for wedding invitations..

I do enjoy the odd card that I receive from my sister, but if it costs a dollar to ship it, plus the 3-4 dollars for a card what is the point?

The only time in the past 5 years I can remember mailing anything was university transcripts and the odd letter to my ex (girlfriend at the time) while I was on course because it was "fun" and was a good way to pass the time..



I am rather surprised by this.. I'll have to do more research on this.

There are thousands of people, in Canada alone, that don't have computer access or knowledge of use. If you want to tell the government something, through your elected officials and expect them to read your letter, it better be on paper and through the mail. Otherwise they don't much look at emails. I can't send and receive packages over the internet. (You can order them like that, but they still need delivery, much of that by CanPost.) and so on.

 

[George Wallace]

There are thousands of people, in Canada alone, that don't have computer access or knowledge of use. If you want to tell the government something, through your elected officials and expect them to read your letter, it better be on paper and through the mail. Otherwise they don't much look at emails. I can't send and receive packages over the internet. (You can order them like that, but they still need delivery, much of that by CanPost.) and so on.

Not to mention, the Government and various other institutions such as Insurance Companies are still sending out cheques in the mail.  My PDSP claim is submitted digitally, but the cheque is still sent in the mail.

As for electronic being free; that is a false claim.  You are still paying for a service.  Canada Post is trying to get into the electronic passage of info, mail, etc. business; and you can bet your last dollar that they intend to charge for it.

 

[marinemech]

Canada post already sorta has broken into mail with epost (one old employer strickly used it to send out stubs and t4 and ROEs)

 

[The Bread Guy]

... Canada Post is going to close its large plant on Industrial Rd in Ottawa, and send all of Ottawa's mail to Montreal for sorting.  A city of nearly 1 million people is sending all its mail two hours down the road to another province and city to be sorted ...

<sarcasm>But don't you know that fewer, bigger places to get 'er done is FAR better than a lot of smaller places?  That seems to be the argument with schools, hospitals and nursing homes</sarcasm> - oh, wait, those examples don't always work better with "fewer but bigger, either".

That said, I don't know if privatization would make things better, especially in areas that are more "Canadian-ish":  not many people, lots of geography to cover.

 

[runormal]

There are thousands of people, in Canada alone, that don't have computer access or knowledge of use.

I really don't buy this argument at all, i grew up in Rural Ontario and in my small town of 900 people we had a library with 2 computers for free access to be used throughout the day, I haven't stepped foot in it since around 2007, so I imagine the offerings have improved. We also got a new Library a few years ago, so I guarantee they have.

Regardless, you can buy a functional desktop for low 300's or an android tablet for much less. At the end of the day it is 2016, anyone who at this point has decided to not adopt this "new" technology is leaving themselves behind. With three websites you have so much access to information, Google, Wikipedia and Facebook. Probably the next two influential would be YouTube and twitter (I don't personally use Twitter however). If people don't know, ask. I've helped my mom,dad and siblings, but surprisingly my grandparents on both sides of the family where more computer savy than my parents.

If you want to tell the government something, through your elected officials and expect them to read your letter, it better be on paper and through the mail. Otherwise they don't much look at emails.

I agree with this is, and this is the one con for doing things online that you loose the "human touch". 

I can't send and receive packages over the internet. (You can order them like that, but they still need delivery, much of that by CanPost.) and so on.

I personally do not ship much, I receive from online retailers here or there, but the only time I've received something was when I needed my mom to ship my dress clothes after a move.  I personally get a good service from Canada Post but again if they went on strike next week it wouldn't effect me other than my dollar shave club razors  . If I were to buy something online I would just pay the extra shipping to get someone else to deliver it. But again, I'm young, trying to pay of student loans/save money so unless something breaks (mouse/keyboard/laptop) I'm not buying anything.. Can Post does do a good job of shipping packages, especially because they have so many retail outlets from when they used to send a lot of letters. My original post did reference letters, as that is where my problem with Canada Post. I'm trying to understand how many letters people actually receive.

Not to mention, the Government and various other institutions such as Insurance Companies are still sending out cheques in the mail.  My PDSP claim is submitted digitally, but the cheque is still sent in the mail.

I think this is an age thing again, you have existing mail out cheques set up so you'll get them. Case in point, my mom gets a hard copy GST rebate, I get the same cheque direct deposited. Likewise last year the government strictly said that they were not mailing out T4's unless it was required (i.e lack off access to system, or no longer employed). The only thing that my government job mailed me was a copy of my last pay cheque/summary of contract because your file is closed after you leave so they just mail it your address on file. Likewise, my credit card statements (RBC), phone bills (Koodo), pay stubs army (EMAA) are all sent electronically. RBC/Koodo all would charge me $1.50 a month if I wanted a paper copy mailed to me. To me that is a waste of money I'll just print a copy off at home if I REALLY need one.

As for electronic being free; that is a false claim.  You are still paying for a service.  Canada Post is trying to get into the electronic passage of info, mail, etc. business; and you can bet your last dollar that they intend to charge for it.

Good luck to Canada Post, you can use any email service for "free". Yes google is reading all of your emails, but it is "free". Everything we send at work (civvy side) that is external is sent through email, there is no reason to change that. Especially when how powerful tools such as mail merge are (you can send 1000 emails personalized emails to a matter of minutes based on a excel spreadsheet). Pretty neat stuff. I did see "E-Post" way back in the when, but for me another email type service to monitor? No thanks, I can barely monitor 3 emails as it is.

 

[Fishbone Jones]

I really don't buy this argument at all, i grew up in Rural Ontario and in my small town of 900 people we had a library with 2 computers for free access to be used throughout the day, I haven't stepped foot in it since around 2007, so I imagine the offerings have improved. We also got a new Library a few years ago, so I guarantee they have.

Regardless, you can buy a functional desktop for low 300's or an android tablet for much less. At the end of the day it is 2016, anyone who at this point has decided to not adopt this "new" technology is leaving themselves behind. With three websites you have so much access to information, Google, Wikipedia and Facebook. Probably the next two influential would be YouTube and twitter (I don't personally use Twitter however). If people don't know, ask. I've helped my mom,dad and siblings, but surprisingly my grandparents on both sides of the family where more computer savy than my parents.

Many on fixed income can't afford a computer, even at $300. Then they have to pay for internet. You can't expect people, especially old and infirm, to get up every day and walk to the closest Tim's and do their business. I'm glad you're available to spend time teaching your parents and grandparents. Millions of people don't have that luxury. The fact is, there are hundreds of thousands out there who, for one reason or another, don't do email or computers. You can't cut people off from communicating with others because they don't do computer. The government can't just stop physical mail delivery, until it, officially and universally, has a program to move away from it.

 

[George Wallace]

Many on fixed income can't afford a computer, even at $300. Then they have to pay for internet. You can't expect people, especially old and infirm, to get up every day and walk to the closest Tim's and do their business. I'm glad you're available to spend time teaching your parents and grandparents. Millions of people don't have that luxury. The fact is, there are hundreds of thousands out there who, for one reason or another, don't do email or computers. You can't cut people off from communicating with others because they don't do computer. The government can't just stop physical mail delivery, until it, officially and universally, has a program to move away from it.

:goodpost:  Excellent points. 

 

[SupersonicMax]

There are already mechanisms in place that, other than parcel deliveries, replace traditional mail services.  It's a matter for the government to set a date at which time, mail delivery of government correspondence will incur a cost to the user while electronic communication remains free (like a lot of private institutions already do).  Then, sometime later, traditional mail is phased out entirely from government communications. 

Computers and Internet can be accessed for free at most public librairies.  I see no issues with starting implementing such a plan in the near future.

 

[dapaterson]

In southern Ontario you can get a smart phone with 5gb data and unlimited Canada and US calling for 45 per month.  Cheaper than a Bell landline.

How long and for how much taxpayer money must we subsidize those who refuse to change?

 

[QV]

This is all just a continuation on the governments of the day plan to reduce its liabilities.  Severance pay loss, pension "modernization", VAC pensions, increased pension contribution rates, reduction in final move benefits... this Canada Post issue is just one of many. 

 

[The Bread Guy]

In southern Ontario you can get a smart phone with 5gb data and unlimited Canada and US calling for 45 per month. 

Not all of Canada has access to cheap, reliable internet access - I live in a city of 110,000 or so, and 30 minutes drive from here, people can only get dial-up or hugely-expensive satellite service because the "big vendors" say it's not economically viable.  Not everyone lives in the GTA or NCC, so not all GTA/NCC solutions are available to all Canadians.

And to those saying public libraries are available for internet access:  how many of you would be willing to restrict your access to your own electronic access to business hours only?  And as more of us look things up online instead of talking to a librarian, libraries are shrinking staff and hours, so they may also be at risk of going the way of stamped mail.