The “new” Publisac that TC Transcontinental wants Canada Post to deliver angers front-line postal workers who are ill-equipped for the task.
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No question delivering the Publisac on terms dictated by Canada Post, the postal union says. He will file a complaint next Monday when he has to send his employees “to the front lines” when they are ill-equipped for the job.
TC Transcontinental’s ruse of using Canada Post to circumvent regulations and continue to deliver its Publisac in Montreal won’t pass as a letter if we trust the Postal Workers’ Union (STTP).
“Delivery starts next Monday at the Snowdon and Chabanel plants. These two post offices will be the “guinea pigs” of the experience! We don’t want any unfortunate events to occur and that is why we are asking for the postponement so that everything is ready before the start,” said Yannick Scott, spokesman for CUPW.
work overload and danger
The new Publisac differs from the old “plastic bag”. It can weigh up to 200 grams, measures 11 inches by 12 inches and holds up to 8 flyers from grocery stores or pharmacies (see photo).
With this weight and these dimensions, a postman’s bag can hold a maximum of 79 flyers without a single letter. As a result, the employee has to make multiple trips back and forth to their truck to refuel.
“Unfortunately, some always exceed the recommended weight limit and overload their bag to make fewer round trips,” explains Yannick Scott. At the moment the weather is nice, but this winter you will risk your safety with the snowy streets of Montreal, the poorly cleared sidewalks or the ice.
Productivity can also suffer. Mail delivery inevitably takes longer and results in a lot of overtime that Canada Post has to pay for.
relay boxes
Consequently, the union is asking Canada Post to identify locations where large quantities of flyers can be dropped off (e.g. in residences or in certain shops) so mailmen can make continuous deliveries.
In places where this isn’t possible, Canada Post has to install more relay boxes (those green or gray metal boxes that have gradually disappeared over time). The union also wants to increase the working hours of the postal assistants in the facilities and, above all, postpone the October 17th introduction date.
“The employer’s attitude is not only contemptuous, it is contrary to your health and safety. Instead of using the maximum, she is taking small steps and is about to bring about a heralded disaster,” said Alain Robitaille, president of CUPW’s Montreal section, in a video intended for mail carriers last Thursday.
Canada Post responds that as the national mail service provider, “the company and its employees are responsible for the delivery of all properly prepared and paid for mail, including direct mail. This is part of our longstanding mandate and ensures we don’t choose which mail is delivered,” said spokesman Phil Rogers.
At the request of Le Journal, TC Transcontinental said it had no comment to make on the matter.
Forbidden in Mirabel
In April, the City of Montreal announced that as of May 2023, the Publisac could only be distributed to those who request it. However, because it is a Crown Corporation, Canada Post is not subject to local regulations and is therefore authorized to deliver TC Transcontinental’s Publisac.
However, several municipalities want to follow the direction taken by the City of Montreal, including Laval, but are waiting to see how
the situation will change.
In October 2019, the city of Mirabel became the first city in Quebec to ban the automatic distribution of Publisac, which is now only distributed to citizens who request it.
Canada Post is in the red
Canada Post is keen to increase its revenue by any means necessary, hence its interest in distributing the Publisac.
The state-owned company posted a pre-tax loss of $160 million in the second quarter of 2022 as package volumes declined from high levels a year earlier.
Canada Post lost $151 million before taxes in the same quarter last year.
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