Lucky Duck Mail Club spreads kindness during the postal strike
A small Ontario project is turning frustration into connection. The Lucky Duck Mail Club, a St. Catharines based snail-mail subscription, is leaning on notes of encouragement and original art to keep spirits up while normal deliveries are disrupted.
Each monthly bundle typically includes a letter, a 4×6 illustration, and a quote, a format the creator pitches as a reminder to slow down and stay in touch.
Recent coverage highlighted how the effort grew out of one person’s resolve to keep mail magic alive, with founder Kiki Klassen previously taking hours to hand-deliver envelopes around nearby communities when service faltered.
The message now is patience and kindness until operations normalize, with the club’s audience sharing prompts and reflections in the meantime.
The initiative underscores how customers are improvising around the outage while trying to preserve the ritual of receiving something tangible.
For followers abroad, the project offers an international tier so letters can still move even if domestic routes are constrained.
It is a tiny slice of good news in a tense moment, and a reminder that loyalty built through thoughtful service can endure beyond a stoppage.
Canadian postal workers rally as strike enters ninth day
Postal workers and supporters rallied Friday as the walkout reached day nine, with union locals keeping picket lines visible after midweek demonstrations in Toronto and a Parliament Hill gathering signaled broader labor backing.
Events earlier in the week drew crowds outside MP offices and downtown sites, and organizers say actions will continue through the weekend if talks fail to gain traction
Allies from other unions have joined CUPW members at rallies, underscoring the dispute’s political stakes and the union’s message that the postal network is a public service worth protecting.
A Toronto day-of-action midweek brought labor and community groups to the line, while an Ottawa rally drew national labor figures.
CUPW’s public statements continue to frame the fight around service standards and community access, not only wages.
Operational ripples are widening beyond Canada.
The U.S. Postal Service has suspended its delivery-time guarantee for Priority Mail Express International parcels headed to Canada, warning customers of potential delays while the strike persists.
That adds to uncertainty for cross-border shippers heading into a heavy promotional calendar.
Roughly 55,000 workers are off the job, and pressure is building for a negotiated path that stabilizes service without sacrificing the network’s reach.
Canada Post tables new global offers with 13.59% wage gains
Beyond the headline pay package, the latest offer sketches how Canada Post would reshape the network and workforce.
The corporation seeks to remove a clause in the Urban agreement that designates 493 corporate post offices as off limits for network changes, saying the change would let it rebalance resources toward communities with greater need.
It lays out a workforce adjustment process that leans first on upcoming retirements, then voluntary departure incentives of up to 78 weeks of base pay.
If reductions go further, seniority-based bidding and bumping would apply before any layoffs.
Laid-off employees would retain recall rights for two years and could receive a salary top-up during that period.
The company also proposes temporary adjustments to “job security for life” provisions to complete the transition.
Canada Post offer more flexible staffing for weekend parcel surges
Canada Post is pitching weekend-focused staffing to stabilize parcel delivery during promotions and holidays.
The plan centers on part-time roles with guaranteed hours and access to health and pension benefits, aimed at covering surges without heavy overtime or spillover into Monday.
Management says flexible crews could shorten delivery windows and make service more predictable for ecommerce shippers.
Any headcount reductions would start with attrition and voluntary departures, with layoffs described as a last resort during the transition.
The company also wants a more flexible delivery model to better match demand. Parcels revenue fell 36.7% year over year in the second quarter as volumes dropped 36.5%, contributing to a $407 million loss before tax.
Canada Post argues that weekend capacity would help win back volume once operations normalize.
Flexible weekend capacity at Canada Post could help narrow the reliability gap that emerged during the labor dispute. It also intersects with broader wage and cost dynamics in the economy, including recent minimum wage changes.
Earlier this year, Air Canada flight attendants rejected a wage deal before the dispute moved to mediation, a reminder that compensation, scheduling, and staffing flexibility often travel together in high stakes negotiations.
Union says Canada Post is not listening after new offer lands
Canada Post presented new “global offers” to its two Canadian Union of Postal Workers bargaining units on Oct. 3, pitching the package as a path to modernization that still respects employees.
The company said in a press release: “The offers enable the company’s modernization while balancing its financial realities with fairness and respect for employees.”
The proposals cover both urban operations and rural and suburban mail carriers, and arrive as a nationwide strike continues into a second week.
In a bulletin Friday, the union said Canada Post is “not listening” and accused the employer of recycling elements workers had already rejected, with added concessions the union says would weaken protections.
CUPW said its negotiators will study the documents and respond, but the early read is that the new language does not bridge the gap on wages, staffing, and delivery standards.
The offer lands after weeks of rising pressure and a turbulent year at the postal operator.
In mid September, Canada Post signaled a new approach to its union negotiations following a summer vote that turned down earlier offers.
Ottawa has urged both sides to table ratifiable agreements, stressing the need to stabilize a service that millions of households and businesses still rely on even as letter volumes fall.
At the center of the dispute are pay, job security, and the shape of delivery. CUPW has pushed for full-time job protections and wage increases that keep pace with costs.
Recent union proposals called for a total 19% raise over four years, along with limits on expanded part-time work and safeguards for health and safety.
Canada Post, which has posted steep losses in recent years, argues it needs room to redesign how work is organized in order to control costs and compete in parcels, while minimizing the impact on employees.
What changed in the offer
Canada Post says the latest package keeps “key items for employees” while aligning operations with today’s delivery needs.
The company frames it as part of a broader renewal effort aimed at returning the Crown corporation to financial sustainability without taxpayer bailouts.
CUPW counters that the draft still falls short on wages and would make it easier to reshape routes and schedules in ways that erode service quality and job security.
The union also objects to what it describes as new rollbacks tucked into the legal wording.
