BURST
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) is reviewing offers presented by the Crown Corporation as a potential strike looms.
A 72-hour strike notice was issued on Tuesday, with the deadline set as Friday midnight for a planned strike.
If the postal workers hit the picket lines, this would be their second strike in less than six months. The last strike was in November and lasted 32 days after both the parties failed to reach a consensus. In December, the workers were ordered back to work by the Canada Industrial Relations Board.
Canada Post rejects strike delay offer from the union
A two-week pause on the strike was proposed by the union, according to CUPW negotiator Jim Gallant. But Canada Post did not agree to the proposal , pushing for the union to agree to its offers submitted Wednesday.
The new offers include a wage increase of 6 per cent in year one for current employees, 3 per cent in year two, and 2 per cent in year three and year four, respectively, or 13.59 per cent compounded, per a news release.
“The offers also provide employees with better income replacement for leave under the short-term disability program, and six added personal days locked into the collective agreements,” Canada Post said in a statement.
Under these offers, the statement elaborated, the current employees would keep their defined benefit pension, job security provisions, health benefits and post-retirement benefits, vacation (up to seven weeks) and pre-retirement leave, cost of living allowance that protects against the effects of unforeseen inflation, and work schedules.
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