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<\/a>\u201cI think it\u2019s terrible. These cuts are totally uncalled for,\u201d says Barney. \u201cFinancially, Canada Post has been pulling in millions of dollars in profit, 17 out of the last 18 years. So there\u2019s no need for these cutbacks that hurt communities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Losing jobs and cutting services have knockdown effects throughout the community, which students will feel. The loss of door-to-door delivery means far fewer employment opportunities, especially entry-level letter-carrier positions, which are accessible jobs for students.<\/p>\n
But Barney says the issue isn\u2019t just loss of jobs. There are many hidden costs in stopping door-to-door delivery, since the benefits of the service, though often unnoticed, extend beyond just delivering mail.<\/p>\n
\u201cLetter carriers are people who have a strong sense of public service,\u201d says Barney. \u201cThey find and rescue stray dogs. They call 911 because they know there\u2019s something wrong with a house when the mail hasn\u2019t been picked up in three days. They\u2019re out there talking to people. Seniors who are alone at home, they\u2019re waiting for you. Without door-to-door, you don\u2019t get to know your customers, because you\u2019re just going to a number in a box. You lose that connection with the people.\u201d<\/p>\n
The union believes it is ideology, not economics, that\u2019s motivating the changes at the crown corporation.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe think these changes are being pushed by the Harper government, and we think their ultimate plan is to privatize Canada Post,\u201d says Barney. \u201cThey\u2019re saying that we\u2019re a burden to the taxpayers. But the revenue that Canada Post makes goes to fund health care and other federal programs that benefit taxpayers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Life as a letter carrier<\/b><\/p>\n
Bob is a letter carrier who experiences the cuts and changes to Canada Post every day (he wished to remain anonymous for this story).<\/p>\n
Because of the budget cutbacks, working conditions have deteriorated at the corporation, with high levels of animosity between management and unionized workers. And even though his job is being phased out, Bob says being a letter carrier is \u201chaving to do more than there is allotted time for.\u201d<\/p>\n
There are appealing aspects to the work, and Bob enjoys the relative freedom, the exercise, and being outside in the community. The romance of being a letter carrier attracts \u201ceverybody from academics to addicts, musicians and artists, to drunks. The sorting floor is a real melting pot of personalities.\u201d<\/p>\n
But the job is designed by an equation that doesn\u2019t take into account other factors, like days when there\u2019s double the mail, or bad weather.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re basically left feeling like a corporate packhorse,\u201d says Bob. \u201cThe job was designed by people who have never done it before.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bob is required to deliver everything that comes across his sort desk every day. Most days, he has just enough time to get this done. But on a busy day, finishing a route in eight hours is physically impossible. The corporation does pay employees for working overtime, but staying late at work isn\u2019t optional.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not so bad here in Victoria because it\u2019s generally mild,\u201d he says. \u201cBut if you\u2019re in Winnipeg, and it\u2019s the middle of winter at -35, and you\u2019re staying an hour or two later out in the cold and snow, well, no amount of overtime pay compensates for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a dirty game they\u2019re playing,\u201d he says of management. \u201cEveryone is overburdened and to even survive the workload you have to break the rules.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bob is referring to safety rules that stipulate how a letter carrier is to move up and down a street. They are only allowed to cross at crosswalks and intersections, not allowed to hop fences, hedges, or rails, and must visit houses in a pre-determined order that\u2019s not always the most efficient. To get their work done, postal workers must find ways to circumvent these rules.<\/p>\n
\u201cManagement knows that it\u2019s happening, but they let it slide because if the work is being done in an eight-hour day, it justifies the heavier workload,\u201d he says. \u201cSo they come up with these reports saying that we can do it in eight hours. What they don\u2019t put in the reports is that carriers have to cheat to do it. And of course, if you had an accident, they would say, \u2018Well, you weren\u2019t following the rules, you were cheating, so we don\u2019t have to pay you compensation.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Workers\u2019 Compensation Board claims at Canada Post are so high that in the case of a serious injury they will send out an accident investigator to verify the employee\u2019s version of events.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe management will use any excuse not to pay compensation,\u201d says Bob. \u201cThe detective will look around and say, \u2018Oh, you stepped off onto the grass here, so you weren\u2019t following your route.\u2019 Then the employee is on the hook, not the corporation.\u201d<\/p>\n
The economics of privatization<\/b><\/p>\n