CUPW requests mediator

The union representing Canada’s postal workers asked the federal government to appoint a mediator in its contract talks with Canada Post as it rejected the Crown corporation’s latest offers.

The union made the request late Saturday, just before a deadline passed on Canada Post’s time-sensitive proposals that were meant to stop the rotating strikes affecting its approximately 42,000 urban employees and 8,000 rural and suburban carriers.

A spokeswoman for Labour Minister Patty Hajdu declined to say whether Ottawa would oblige the request, saying only it’s a good sign that both sides are still commited to finding a solution.

“We are encouraged that talks are continuing and will continue to consider all options to find a solution,” Veronique Simard said in an emailed statement.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau weighed in Saturday night with a last-minute plea to the two sides, just hours before the midnight deadline on the Crown corporation’s offers expired. In a Twitter post, Trudeau cited the arrival of the holiday shopping season and urged both sides “to resolve their differences quickly and reach a deal.”

But as the deadline on the offers passed, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers issued a statement that said it had responded “by presenting the Corporation with our own global offers that address our needs and demands.”

CUPW had said on Friday that the new proposals from Canada Post made positive steps, but not enough to end the rotating strikes that have shut down postal operations in more than 200 communities, creating a huge backlog of undelivered mail. It said it would not bring the offers to a vote of its members, although both sides remained at the bargaining table.

The union began rotating strikes in October.