Purolator dispute over, subject to union vote in April.

Wholly Canadian owned carrier Purolator Inc. (Purolator) announced on March 29 that it was lifting its temporary service suspension that had to be imposed because of possible strike action. Purolator is a Canadian company that is over 90 per cent owned by Canada Post.

Members of the Teamster Union (Teamsters) had previously voted 56 per cent in favour of rejecting Purolator’s latest pay offer. The union subsequently issued a 72-hour notice for a possible strike, which would have commenced on Wednesday, March 29. Purolator suspended acceptance of new shipments on Tuesday, March 28.

Within the March 29 announcement Purolator said that it had reached a “tentative agreement,” with Teamsters, which had been unanimously accepted by the union’s bargaining team. The agreement is now subject to ratification by Teamster’s members. In a statement, Ken Johnston, vice president of Human Resources and Labour Relations at Purolator, said: “We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience over the past few days. We’re happy to get back to delivering our customers’ packages now that we’ve reached an agreement that positions the company and employees for sustainable growth in today’s fastchanging marketplace.”

Teamster union members will be voting on the proposed agreement with Purolator from April 21 to April 28. In a statement to Teamster members, Gary Kitchen, director of the Parcel Division at Teamsters Canada and Chairman of the Bargaining Committee said, “When we started in August 2016, your bargaining committee was faced with an employer that was losing market share. Some of their proposals included contracting out your work, eliminating the defined benefit pension plan and your retirement allowances, and allowing 25 per cent of all hours in each depot to go to a new type of employee at drastically reduced wages.

Faced with these threats and more, you responded with a show of solidarity by voting 97.4 per cent in favour of strike action.

After negotiations resumed, the company presented a final offer that was ultimately rejected by 56.1 per cent of the members who voted. The union, as mandated by the membership, served the company with a 72-hour notice of strike action that would have taken effect at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 29.”

Kitchen also said in the statement that, “While a collective agreement can never be all things to all people, the bargaining committee and I believe this agreement offers gains and stability that far outweigh the economic hardship and uncertainty of a labour dispute.”

The mediation was called by the director general of Federal Mediation and Conciliation Services to avert a strike. Subject to the vote it looks like the mediation initiative may have been successful. “Your entire negotiating committee – in other words, your local union officers, business agents, and stewards – is unanimously recommending that you accept this agreement,” said Kitchen.