Online store blames Canada Post

The Ontario Cannabis Store is blaming early order delays on labour action at Canada Post, which shut down the key Toronto mailprocessing facilities just as the province was preparing to ship out its first wave of orders. OCS warned the delivery delays may not be solved yet. The provincial retailer of cannabis and cannabis products said it has received more than 150,000 orders since cannabis was legalized Oct. 17. According to the store, Ontario received more orders for cannabis than all other provinces combined. “The unbelievably high demand and complications related to rotating strikes at Canada Post, as well as a noted mail backlog at Canada Post, will result in longer-thanexpected delivery times for some people,” said the Ontario Cannabis Store in an emailed statement. Canada Post confirmed rotating strikes by employees in Toronto have thrown a wrench into the province’s plans for online ordering. “Toronto is a significant mail and processing hub for Canada Post. Employees returned to work last night. We apologize for any delays as we are making best efforts to minimize any impact on service. Any parcel that was in transit was safely stored during the strike activity,” said a Canada Post email. The Ontario Cannabis Store said it has taken additional steps to add capacity to its processing centre. To allow orders to be filled more quickly, it has also added more customer service representatives to answer phone calls from customers with questions about their orders. Complaints from many customers online centred around haphazard payment processes that appeared to initially charge cards for an order, then later those charges would disappear. The Ontario Cannabis Store said the early charge is like a preauthorization for the order with final payment processed when the order is ready to ship. "We continue to ask for the public’s patience as we work through these unprecedented issues,” said OCS president Patrick Ford in a statement.