As you may be aware, Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) have been in the process of negotiating a collective bargaining agreement over the past several months.
On October 12, the conciliation period ended without a signed agreement, kicking off a three-week “cooling off” period during which time no legal labour disruptions can take place. Any disruptions following this period would require 72-hour notice. This means that the earliest any labour action might take place as a result of these negotiations is November 3, 2024.
Canada Post and CUPW are still negotiating. As many sellers may remember, previous negotiations between Canada Post and CUPW have entered these later stages and been resolved without service disruptions.
However, labour disruptions can impact your ability to deliver orders to customers on time. In the event that disruptions do take place, we recommend taking the following proactive steps to keep your eBay business strong for the holidays:
- Ensure that your listings/business policies offer an additional carrier option. eBay sellers receive eBay-negotiated discounts on eBay Labels UPS and FedEx services as well, so consider familiarizing yourself with these services.
- Shipments that are already in transit may also be impacted if labour disruptions take place. For extra peace of mind and to ensure your buyers receive their shipments on time, consider using an alternative shipping service from now until at least October 31, when the result of the strike vote is announced or the parties reach an agreement.
- Continue monitoring for updates directly on the Canada Post website.
eBay will continue to monitor the situation and provide additional information and recommendations as events progress.
As always, thank you for selling on eBay.
