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Canada Post workers have voted in favour of a new contract, ending years of tensions and back and forth negotiations between the union and the Crown corporation, including nation-wide strikes.
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), which represents 55,000 postal workers, says its members voted overwhelmingly in favour of ratifying the deal reached tentatively in December 2025, with 85.9 per cent voting to accept it.
The union says about 86 per cent of rural and suburban mail carriers voted to accept the contract, and 89 per cent of urban workers gave it the green light.
“Despite these challenges, postal workers made some gains and stopped drastic rollbacks first proposed by Canada Post,” said Jan Simpson, CUPW national president, in a statement following the vote.
“These agreements protect key rights including job security and pensions, and secured good wage increases, improved benefits, and pay for all hours worked for [rural and suburban mail carriers].”
The deal includes wage increases of 6.5 per cent in the first year, three per cent in the second and increases matching the annual inflation rate in years three to five.
A weekend parcel delivery model and better benefits were also in the deal.
Workers took to picket line several times
The yes vote puts to bed years of sparring between Canada Post and the union over wages and structural changes to the postal service, with workers having taken to the picket line on multiple occasions throughout the bargaining process.
In a statement from Canada Post, the Crown corporation’s president and CEO, Doug Ettinger, welcomed the yes vote.
“With the stability of new agreements in place, we look forward to working with our employees and bargaining agents to rebuild the business, restore confidence in the postal system and better serve the country,” he said in a statement.
Canada Post is beginning the first wave of ending door-to-door delivery as it shifts to community mailboxes. The move is intended to save money and address the Crown corporation’s debt.
Canada Post employees cast ballots between April 20 and May 30. Both sides agreed not to engage in any strikes or lockouts while the ratification vote took place, though employees were also set to vote on whether to authorize a strike mandate in case they rejected the deal.
In a March newsletter, 60 per cent of the national executive board recommended that workers vote in favour of ratifying the deal. But Simpson, the national president, and four other union leaders issued a minority report saying the agreement failed to make gains on a number of issues related to compensation and worker rights and encouraged workers to vote against the agreement.
The ratification vote follows first quarter results from Canada Post on Friday that show the Crown corporation lost $205 million in the first three months of the year. The postal service has been underwater with debt in recent years as it has struggled to compete against private couriers.
Last month, the federal government handed $673 million to Canada Post to keep the mail service afloat for the current fiscal year.
Amid declining letter and parcel demand, the Crown corporation has said it must modernize through reforms that include community mailboxes, weekend parcel delivery and possible post office closures.
Can ending door-to-door mail delivery help solve Canada Post’s financial crisis? Andrew Chang explains how Canada Post’s strength may now be its weakness — and how a path forward could unfold. Plus, is Trump right about eliminating the penny?
Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement Joël Lightbound said Monday’s announcement is a “major step forward” in the postal service’s restructuring work.
“Canada Post and its workers can now move forward together to build a stronger, more modern, and more reliable postal service that continues to serve Canadians in every corner of the country,” Lightbound said.
Part of that restructuring includes cuts and ends door-to-door delivery for some addresses, as well as expanding the use of community mailboxes.
The union says it opposes cuts to the postal service and says now that this deal for workers has been ratified, it will turn its focus to helping communities “protect, improve, and expand” the service.
