As you are likely aware, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers [CUPW] has issued notice of its intention to disrupt normal Canada Post services with rotating strikes starting at 12:01am on Monday, October 22nd. Should this labour action take place, it may affect the flow of shipments within and from Canada. Rotating strikes means that only limited areas of the country will be impacted at a time. The last time Canada Post had rotating strikes, eBay did not actually see a material impact on shipments. This notice has been issued, but both parties are still negotiating and at this time we do not know if the disruption will, in fact, occur.
Should a disruption occur, eBay will remain open for business, and we’re asking you to do the same. Here are some of the adjustments we recommend making to help minimize the impact of a labour disruption on your eBay business:
- Keep your listings active. If you want to manage buyer expectations, consider increasing your handle time.
- Add an alternative carrier to your listings, such as UPS, Purolator, or FedEx.
- Consider freight forwarding companies such as Chit Chats—a seller favourite.
- If you don’t offer local pickup, consider starting now. Let buyers in your area know that they can get your items quickly and easily.
eBay is working with internal teams to monitor and adjust estimated delivery dates and eBay Money Back Guarantee timelines to ensure that you are not penalized for late shipments due to the labour disruption. If the threatened disruption occurs, we will contact your impacted buyers in Canada and the US to inform them of possible delays.
We encourage you to visit canadapost.ca/update to stay up-to-date on the latest developments. We will post additional details on our Announcements page as they become available.
Sincerely,
The eBay Canada Team
