Mail service in Drumheller was affected by the strike action taken Wednesday as the Canadian Postal Union’s rotating strike came to Calgary Local 710.
Local affiliate offices in Drumheller, Hanna, High River and Three Hills were also part of the 24-hour work stoppage. Drumheller postal employees were not at the office. Executive vice president of local 710 Ardvan Austin and Calgary letter carrier Shane Schiller were at the Drumheller Post Office picketing Wednesday morning.
Austin said the responses from Drumhellerites passing have been mixed, and the two were distributing information of the union’s position to people coming into the office and passing on the street.
“If corporations treated people in a fair manner, we wouldn’t need a union,” said Austin.
InSide Drumheller reached president of Local 710 Anna Beale on the picket line in Calgary. The conversation was frequently interrupted by the sound of honking cars passing.
“Don’t let anybody tell you we don’t have public support,” Beale said.
She said the key issues for carriers are health and safety, and staffing issues.
“The main things is the employer is not addressing our demands on the table. They are more focused on their demands, and not addressing ours,” said Beale.
She said the final straw was on Monday when temporary workers were sent home, leaving routes undelivered.
“We have employees chomping at the bit for a couple days to get out on the picket line and tell the employer to ‘pay attention to our demands, staff properly, respect us for the work we do and make sure we have a safe and healthy work place,’” she said.
Canada Post’s latest press release on negotiations says the latest union offer is too expensive for the corporation, and fails to address the challenges facing the postal system.
Since the rotating strike, Canada Post says mail volumes have dropped as much as 50 per cent.
