December 13, 2024
It appears government intervention will soon put an end to the almost month-long strike by Canada Post workers. On the morning of Friday, December 13, 2024, Minister of Labour Steven MacKinnon announced that he was using his power under s. 107 of the Canada Labour Code to direct the Canada Industrial Relations Board (the “CIRB”) to end the strike.
How The Strike Will Come to an End
In a statement posted to Twitter, the Minister said that he has directed the CIRB to assess the likelihood of the parties reaching an agreement by the end of the year. If that is unlikely, the CIRB is directed to order the parties to resume operations and put an end to the strike. The Labour Minister also announced that he will be appointing an Industrial Inquiry Commission tasked to consider bargaining issues plaguing the two sides and to come up with a series of recommendations by May 15, 2025, for how a new collective agreement can be reached. A federally-appointed mediator found the sides were so far apart in negotiations that he withdrew from the process and suspended mediation on November 27, 2024.
The Minister’s statement indicated that the terms of the current collective agreement will be extended to May 22, 2025, if no new agreement is reached before then. Canada Post had taken the position that the terms and conditions of the now-expired collective agreement no longer applied and began making changes to its operations as a result. The Canadian Union of Postal Workers filed an unfair labour practice complaint with the CIRB in response to the mass layoff of 328 striking Canada Post workers. That complaint was resolved on Wednesday, December 11, 2024, though the details of the settlement have not been made public.
Government Intervention in Past Labour Disputes
The Minister’s move is the latest use of his powers under s. 107 of the Code to put an end to labour disruptions this year. Earlier, these powers were invoked in the dispute between WestJet and the union representing its aircraft maintenance engineers, between CN Rail, Canadian Pacific Kansas City, and the Teamsters Rail Conference, as well as in the strikes at ports in Montreal, Vancouver, and Prince Rupert. The Teamsters Rail Conference has challenged the Minister’s direction and the CIRB’s order ending their job action with the two railway companies in the Federal Court of Canada. For now, both sides say they are reviewing the details of the Minister’s announcement and are awaiting a copy of the formal order. A hearing with the CIRB will take place soon to put into action the directions issued by Minister MacKinnon. Plans for the resumption of postal services have not yet been announced.
Learn more about the Canada Post labour dispute by reading Stephen Torscher’s previous article “Breaking Down Canada Post’s Imminent Strike.”
If you have any questions about labour relations, please contact a member of the Carbert Waite Employment & Labour Law Group.
Author
Stephen Torscher
Partner and Employment and Labour Law Group Co-Chair
T: 403.705.3660
E: [email protected]