The Struggle Continues: An Analysis of Conflict in the Canadian Post Office

Abstract

<p>The Thesis examines the nature of management - union relations in the Canadian Post Office since the advent of collective bargaining in 1967. The Thesis focuses on the reasons for the numerous strikes, work slowdowns and poor postal service. It is suggested the bitter postal conflict of the last decade is a product of the highly restrictive nature of the collective bargaining process and the massive reorganization of the postal network in the 1970's. It is argued that the collective bargaining process prevented the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) from negotiating such critical issues as health and safety, job security and technological change. In particular, the lack of any 'legal' right to negotiate autanation of internal mail processing combined with the Post Office management's refusal to eliminate the adverse effects of automation, created the conditions for a 'protracted war' between management and the postal union. Postal automation brought about profound changes in the postal workplace. Not only was manual sortation replaced as the 'hub' of mail processing, but postal workers found themselves working in a progressively more dangerous, noisy and otherwise adversely changed work environment. Postal workers required an 'open' collective bargaining framework to come to grips with the many changes in the method and organization of work. Lastly, it is argued that the transformation of the Post Office Department into a Crown corporation will not promote a better labour relations climate in the Post Office unless the postal corporation's management is prepared to negotiate technological change. Moreover, management must accept what negotiating automation implies -'humanizing' the Post Office workplace.</p>