Canada Post Flips and Flops on Parcel Project!
 The
2003 collective agreement contains a number of changes that have had an
impact on both Letter Carriers and Mail Service Couriers, for better and
for worse. One of the positive changes to the new collective agreement
has addressed a longstanding dispute that was created when Canada Post
chose to hire contractors to deliver expedited Canada Post parcels to
the same customers being serviced by members of the CUPW bargaining
unit. Under Appendix S of the collective agreement, Canada Post is
obligated to return the expedited parcel delivery work that was
previously contracted out to Combined Urban Services (see “Dolphin
Delivery”) to the CUPW bargaining unit no later than the fall of
2005.
The return of expedited parcels
into the CUPW bargaining unit was intended to provide more work for CUPW
members and help to ensure our future job security. However, the manner
in which expedited parcels will be reintegrated into our bargaining unit
will reorganize the nature of Vancouver’s parcel delivery operations.
Appendix S of the collective agreement sets out a process for setting up
the new “model”, and is based primarily on a pilot project that was
implemented in Winnipeg several years ago. In accordance with Appendix
S, the parties are required to “work together” to “facilitate”
the conversion of our present delivery operations. To that end, there
are a number of joint committees involved with the conversion to the new
“model”.
In preparation for the new
“model”, CUPW members working in conjunction with the local parcel
committee have been involved in the labour-intensive process of creating
an accurate database of Vancouver’s parcel deliveries. A considerable
amount of time and expense has also gone into assessing the delivery
rates to be applied to the new delivery format. During the course of
those preparations, the Union attempted to “work together” with
management to ensure that the project was a success. Unfortunately, the
nebulous nature of management’s restructuring plans led to confusion,
delays, and indecision.
On May 3, 2005, Canada Post
disclosed its “official” plan. Unsurprisingly, that plan departed
from what was previously represented to the Union. This bulletin is
meant to help ensure that CUPW members are made aware of some of the
issues concerning the implementation of this project.
MSC Parcel
Hubs?
 Under
the process set out in Appendix S, parcel operations are to be based out
of a centralized delivery facility known as a parcel “hub”. The
“hub” will be designed to handle current parcel products as well as
the additional volume of expedited parcels that will be returned to CUPW
upon the implementation of the project. MSCs will report to the
“hub” rather than decentralized postal facilities to obtain their
vehicles and prepare for delivery. MSCs will be assigned to deliver
parcels in “loops”, which is Appendix S nomenclature for an MSC
schedule. “Loops” will be put up for bid by seniority in the same
manner as current MSC schedules are posted for bid.
Initially, Canada Post indicated
that there would be two parcel “hubs”
within Greater Vancouver. One “hub” was to be located at the
Vancouver Mail Processing Plant (VMPP), and the other was to be located
at the Vancouver Parcel Distribution Center (VPDC). All parcels in
Greater Vancouver were to be delivered by the MSCs working out of those
two “hubs”, with the exception of certain Letter Carrier units where
Motorized Letter Carriers (MLC) and Motorized Mail Couriers (MMC) would
deliver parcels for their own routes.
On May 3, 2005, Canada Post announced that it had abandoned that
strategy. Instead, Canada Post announced that a corporate cost-benefit
analysis had established that it is cheaper to have a single “hub”
located at the VMPP operate in conjunction with certain Letter Carrier
facilities to provide parcel delivery throughout Vancouver.
According to management,
decentralized MSCs working at Stations D, F, G, K, Depot 32 and the
Mountainview Delivery Center will be assigned to the VMPP “hub”.
Those MSCs will be assigned to deliver parcels within the geographical
areas that correspond with those facilities, with the addition of the
downtown core that is within the Depot 74 delivery area.
Expedited parcels that are destined
for delivery within the boundaries of Station S, SVDC, RDC, North
Burnaby, South Burnaby and the North Shore will be delivered by the MLCS
and MMCs that work within those facilities.
How Will the
Parcel Project Impact on Letter Carriers?
 All
Letter Carrier facilities will be affected by the implementation of the
Parcel Project, in one way or another.
While MMC stations such as
Station S, SVDC, and RDC already deliver expedited parcels, Canada
Post’s new direction will still have ramifications on those
facilities. For example, a costly restructuring exercise was recently
undertaken at the SVDC in anticipation of the new parcel “model”. In
restructuring SVDC, Canada Post removed the time values for much of its
parcel delivery as that work was to be transferred to MSCs working out
of the “hubs”. With Canada Post’s change in direction, the results
of the restructuring exercise have been thrown in the can. SVDC routes
will now remain status quo and continue to deliver expedited parcels!
Similarly, RDC was in the midst of a full-blown restructure at the time
of Canada Post’s May 3rd revelation. That restructure has
also been cancelled, although route measurement officers will be staying
behind to address some of the problem routes.
Station S is also in the midst of a
restructure, but that restructuring exercise will continue with parcel
delivery included in route assessments. North Burnaby will be
restructured to include the delivery of expedited parcels on MLC routes,
and South Burnaby, which is currently under restructure, will also be
assessed to include the delivery of expedited parcels. The North Shore
will be treated in the same manner, with Canada Post revisiting its
approach to the CDC restructure to include the delivery of expedited
parcels within all the FSAs contained within that facility.
Many Issues!
CUPW has many concerns with the
parcel project. The Union’s goal has always been to create full-time
MSC jobs. From the beginning, Canada Post has claimed that 40% of its
total parcel volume must be delivered on Mondays. CPC has also indicated
that weekend work may be required to address the parcel volumes that
accumulate at the end of each week. Those factors have raised the
spectre of part-time work, rather than full-time MSC work.
Canada Post has indicated that it
will overlay expedited parcel volumes on motorized routes
 at
the North Burnaby Delivery Center, Capilano Delivery Center, and South
Burnaby. In response, the Union has demanded appropriate time values,
and has repeatedly raised its concern that Canada Post will overburden
Letter Carriers by creating over-assessed routes without the benefit of
a proper restructure.
There are also many concerns
regarding health and safety. Chief among these concerns is the issue of
vehicles. CUPW has demanded that proper vehicles be provided with which
to handle the increased parcel volumes.
These are but a few of the many unresolved issues on the table.
Canada Post initially set August 15th,
2005 as the target date for the implementation of the parcel project.
Several weeks ago, Canada Post “officially” advised the Union in
writing that the project would be implemented on July 18th.
On May 3rd, Canada Post “officially” announced
that the implementation date would be September 15, 2005. As of
today's date, the target date has been changed to Sept. 19, 2005.
Canada Post has flipped and
flopped throughout the course of this project, and additional changes
are hardly out of the question. I hope that this bulletin has been
informative in terms of outlining some of the issues surrounding this
project. Additional information will be provided as soon as possible.
In Solidarity,
Ken Mooney
President
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