More than a dozen postal workers held a mock funeral outside a Canada Post sorting facility to mourn the loss of their pride, safety and work-life balance as a new sorting system takes hold in Winnipeg.
Workers say the new sorting system — where some employees sort mail for several routes while others deliver — eliminates jobs, creates more work for letter carriers and could delay some mail deliveries.
“We are mourning the death of the pride of being a postal worker,” said Sean Tugby, president of the Winnipeg chapter for Canadian Union of Postal Workers.
“We are mourning the loss of the employer’s responsibility to ensure safe routes and proper safety reporting practices.”
The change in sortation and delivery increased route sizes for the average letter carrier from 23,000 steps per day to 37,000 steps per day, Tugby said while donning all black clothing at the depot on McDermot Avenue.
Workers will also start their shift later in the day, meaning they will work during temperatures of peak heat in the summer and diminished light during the winter where they could experience heat exhaustion or run into hazards in the dark, he said.
The depot on McDermot Avenue, which has more than 100 workers, is among three other Canada Post sorting facilities that have switched to the new system in Winnipeg. The following locations will be completed by the end of October, he said.
A spokesperson from Canada Post said the mail service began implementing these changes across the country in 2017 and that it has not impacted delivery to customers.
“We are sensitive to any concerns raised by employees, as this is a change, and draw upon the experience we have working with employees and the union over the last seven years on these changes,” Canada Post said in an email statement.
The mail service said it restructures routes on a regular basis at all depots due to many factors including the growth and densification of neighbourhoods, changing mail and parcel volumes and the needs of customers.
Postal workers at the demonstration gave obituary-like speeches as they gathered near three hand-crafted tombstones on the sidewalk. They laid white roses on top of a black painted cardboard coffin while saying “With this flower, I mourn home life balance” and “I will miss getting home on time for my children.”
The letter carriers made chants as they held signs like, “More time on the street, harder on your feet.”
Tugby said their contract expired at the end of January, so they are “counting down the days” of a potential work action, but they are hoping to negotiate a new contract this fall.