Dear Panel Members: 

Further to my submission on Bill C14, this is the submission on behalf of the Toronto Local Executive and its members to the Strategic Review on the deregulation of Canada Post. 

Deregulation would jeopardize universal postal services.  Canada Post provides affordable, reliable, and secure services to the public.  They also provide services to every location in the country regardless of how remote it may be, which allows the public to communicate with relatives and people in other communities.  Affordable business rates are good for the economy; they allow small business the opportunity to be competitive with reasonable postage rates. 

Deregulation would result in higher prices, reduced services or both.  It is a proven fact that countries that have deregulated the mail have a higher standard postage rate.  That once the domestic letter market is deregulated, the competition then focuses on the profitable urban areas and business mail.  The rural and suburban areas are not lucrative; these Canadians would have no service, which would be a disgrace on the Government and Canada Post as an organization. 

As well as a loss of service to the public, deregulation will result in lower paying jobs and benefits.  This also has a very negative impact on the community.  It is imperative that these issues are discussed during your meetings with a resolution as an outcome.  Postal services are for all Canadians not just the top 200 big businesses.  Therefore, it is remarkable that the Canadian Public cannot intervene or direct the future of their post office.  It is a known fact that the Canadian Postal Service is one of the finest in the world, why fix what is not broken. 

Security of the mail is of the utmost importance to Canadians, with the high rise in identity theft, the public should feel confident that their mail is sorted and delivered by employees who are specifically trained to deal with all aspects in the security of mail.  Canada Post has an extensive security system that allows the public and business to feel confident that the mail entrusted to be delivered will be private and secure.  Postal workers take great pride in the work they do at Canada Post and in the community they serve. 

Deregulation would also cause harm to the outreach service postal workers provide to their communities, such as notifying authorities when a build up of mail at a senior’s residence or any address is observed.  There have been numerous times that letter carriers have noticed a problem and notified emergency services to help the public.  In some cases, the letter carrier is the only person that the customer speaks to on a daily basis.  This service greatly affects the public.  It is also a service that the employee’s take very seriously, and take pride in community involvement. 

With deregulation, it would cause the market to open up and would take more vehicles to deliver the mail, which would cause a huge impact on our environment.  The more competition entering the letter market would also put more financial pressure on Canada Post.  This would reduce the ability for the Government to insist that mail delivery be environmentally friendly as a role model and a great leader in environmental practices. 

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers Toronto Local respectfully submits this submission on behalf of the Executive and our members. 

Sincerely, 

Jane Marsh

Toronto Local President

47 Densley Ave.

North York, On. M6M 5A8