National Results of the National Ratification Vote
After a month of online ratification meetings and votes, the unaudited results of the national vote on the renewal of the Urban and RSMC collective agreements are as follows:
Urban Bargaining Unit: The recommendation of the NEB has been accepted with 66.3% of the valid votes.
RSMC Bargaining Unit: The recommendation of the NEB has been accepted with 55.3% of the valid votes.
Local Results: The results of the votes by each local will be published as soon as they are available.
Thank You for Participating
On behalf of the National Executive Board, I wish to thank all of the members who participated in the process by attending the ratification vote meetings and voting. We knew from the outset that holding an online vote during a global pandemic would be a challenge, but the NEB believed that the terms of the contract renewal were sufficiently positive that they should be put to a democratic vote of the membership.
The results indicate that a majority of members agreed with this decision.
Two Year Renewal
The next two years will be busy for CUPW. With the new staffing information and the changes in clause 39.06 of the Urban collective agreement, we have the tools to fight for more full-time regular positions in Group 1.
Actions from all levels of the union (local, regional and national) are necessary to make this happen. We will need to organize and fight-back against CPC’s efforts to impose Separate Sort and Delivery (SSD) for Group 2 members, and we have to address the health and safety issues associated with the double bundle delivery method. We will develop and implement the necessary training programs for Group 3 and 4 to ensure our members perform the maintenance of electric vehicles when CPC upgrades to an environmental fleet. CUPW must also finalize the work content committee process and ensure that RSMCs are paid for their assessed time and all work performed in addition to their assessed time.
Time for Service Expansion
As we move into a post-pandemic future, we plan to use this time to work with Canada Post to develop and promote new job creating and revenue generating services such as postal banking, community hubs, and services to the elderly such as seniors check-ins. All of these services are provided by many other postal administrations and there is much we can learn from their experiences and apply to our reality.
The membership has chosen two more years of guaranteed wage increases, improved job security and stability and progress during what remains a very uncertain time. But we will not rest. We have an extra two years to build our collective power for the next round of bargaining. Regardless of how you voted, we must put aside any differences and work together to make more gains in the next round of bargaining.
In Solidarity!
Jan Simpson
National President