BY JOE YOUNG
MONTREAL - Some 45,000 postal workers went on strike across
Canada November 19. The confrontation between Canada Post and
the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) has been building
for some time. The government used all kinds of tactics to
delay the workers having the legal right to strike, which they
finally gained November 17.
On November 24 around 2,000 postal workers demonstrated in front of parliament in Ottawa against the threat of back-to- work legislation. In the face of the determination of the workers to defend their right to strike, the government retreated and appointed a mediator.
One of the CUPW's main demands is that 1,500 part-time jobs become full-time. Of the 45,000 postal workers only 27,000 have full-time jobs. Of the remaining 18,000, about half are part- time and the rest are casuals who work during the Christmas rush. Clément Godbout, the president of the Quebec Federation of Labor, made the link between the fight of the postal workers and the strike against United Parcel Services in September: "For around six months, there has been something happening in the unions, groundwork to win back permanent employment everywhere in North America."
In fact, Canada Post is trying to cut jobs by forcing letter carriers to deliver more mail and not replacing workers who quit or retire. The union says this will lead to the loss of 4,000 full-time jobs. Referring to previous cuts on the railways, Marc Brault, a postal clerk on strike in Montreal told the Militant, "What they did with the railways, they've been trying a long time to do to us. Without doing this they can't privatize."
Luigi Perrotta, also a postal clerk, added, "Every week, there are people who retire but they don't hire new people."
Postal workers are demanding a pay raise of 8.6 percent in an 18-month contract, while the company is offering 3 percent over two years. The workers are trying to make up for income they have lost over the years. Canada Post made a profit of $112.5 millions over the last year.
Throughout the negotiations which have been going on for months, postal workers have looked for ways to put pressure on the Post Office. In early October hundreds of letter carriers in Quebec wore jeans as a form of protest. Some 650 postal workers in Halifax walked out for two days beginning October 2, after management suspended a worker who commented on the high salaries of management. Workers at postal stations across the country began to walk off the job November 19 even before the strike was officially called. Canada Post has made no attempt to maintain work through hiring scabs. Postal workers had defeated such an attempt during their previous strike in 1991.
Canada Post has responded aggressively. Workers wearing jeans in October were suspended for up to six days. On November 19, the chief union negotiator, Philippe Arbour, was shoved to the ground by Jean Lafleur, the chief negotiator for the post office. Lafleur was forced to resign and had to apologize.
The big-business media are working overtime to garner support for back-to-work legislation. Day after day they report on workers losing their jobs because of the strike and talk about small businesses and charities that have been inconvenienced. So far these efforts have not undermined support for the strike.
The postal workers have received support from other unions. Canadian Auto Workers officials have offered a $5 million line of credit and encouraged CAW members to reinforce picket lines if the Post Office tries to use strike breakers.
Joe Young is a member of United Steelworkers of America Local 7625.