I'm sure you've come across the profound stupidity of the decision to strike by CUPW, the Union representing Canada Post Workers.
I have to say that I am really confounded by it. How can anyone be so ignorant of the world around them? Do they not realize that are not in a strong bargaining position?
As a conservative, I'm not really friendly to the idea of crown corporations to begin with. Though Conservatives might be in power I'm not really in any hurry to start laying off innocent workers either. They don't control their Union after all. The Union is a parasite on their backs as much as it is a parasite on the tax payer. Apparently this Union is a mindless flesh eating zombie of a parasite too.
There just isn't a need for Canada Post today. Private companies do a much better job than Canada Post ever has. That fact can be deduced from conservative first principals, but I've had personal experience with lost packages and poor service especially coming out of Quebec. Even Greyhound outperforms Canada Post in my experience. It bugs me that my lost patronage doesn't affect Canada Post in the slightest.
I say let them strike. Its unfortunate. We could just privatize them while there is still some value and a customer base. I'd prefer to give them and their employees a fighting chance in the free market. The Union parasite will kill its host rather than submit to market forces.
Let them strike. They are even doing partial rotating strikes to keep us addicted. The onus is on each and every one of us to boycott Canada Post. Cut them off. Starve them out. The longer they strike the better everyone will get at avoiding them. I recommend the Government direct the various departments to look for and implement work arounds immediately.
We have fax machines and email, let alone skype and Facebook. There are plenty of private couriers for physical packages.
They talk of collective action. Lets have some collective reaction.
8 comments:
I find the post office folks to be very friendly and helpful, the cost of sending a legal sized envelope halfway across Canada for a few bucks is a huge bargain...but. Being represented by a union that supports the very people that can and do kill Canadian soldiers when and where they can is way, way over the top. Screw 'em!!
These workers must have voted for this strike and support it for it to take place, no matter how friendly and helpful they are. In fact I have heard some of them on the Lowell Green show and they prove just how stupid they really are and not living in the real world.
Public sector Union workers live in a parallel universe,one where there are no responsibilities,only "rights",and "social justice" must prevail! ( I was a public sector worker and shop steward for many years).
The Union leaders are outright communists,at the core of their beliefs is "capitalism is evil". That is a huge part of the problem,the Union leaders HATE the employer,and they make sure their feelings are clear to the Union members.
The BIG issue,according to a Postie friend,is not wages,but sick days, and short term or long term disability leave,the operation of which is being privatized and turned over to Manulife Insurance corporation,who intend to run it like a business instead of a welfare program.
You are quite right, most Can Post services can be privatized easily. Just replace home mail delivery with "Super boxes" and they could fire half the letter carriers. The only bargain we get is letter delivery,which is about 55 cents per letter,cheap by any measure,but that's about it.
Strike on lads, if you must. If I were a Postie,I'd be out looking for work before the rush starts.
Perhaps the strike was planned to coincide with a big liberal NDP victory at the polls. Or, barring that, the Conservative minority they were hoping for, which would lead, they foolishly thought, to an equally useful coalition of the leftist losers who might gaze benignly on the demands of the CUPW.
They must have been infuriated when a sensible populace voted in a Conservative majority and they totally misread the mood of the voters.
I have used post offices in many different locations, big cities and small communities, with some wonderful, helpful, cheerful, and customer-service-oriented postal workers, but also have seen opposite situation, where in a small community the residents hesitate even to enter the post office as they know will meet with an arrogant, supercilious, officious moron who is supposed to be giving customer service, but does not as s/he is suffering from delusions of grandeur.
I live in Lynden, a community of 500 people, and the post office workers are ALWAYS friendly, helpful etc...
On the other hand, I have a friend who works as an outside contractor at some of the postal sorting facilities ( eg. Gateway ) and he can regale you for hours on the deliberate sabotage, orchestrated work slowdowns etc... that go on ALL the time. It's both the workers and unions, fire them all.
It would be good to see them privatized, but opening up the market to competition from other private firms is more important. Though Canada Post is a crown corp, they are self sustaining, so although we are technically subsidizing them indirectly via a government enforced monopoly, they receive no funding aside from their own generated revenue.
Privatizing Canada Post without letting other companies bid on delivery contracts would be a continued bad situation. Once they have to compete for contracts they may well privatize on their own to survive.
My experience is that the vast majority of Postal Workers are good people. They want to work hard and they have a solid work ethic.
It's unfortunate that history has led them toward a situation in which they can't win. Many Union organizations have opposed technology and market changes and none (other than CBC) have survived.
Added to the dilemma for the average Postal worker is a leadership more preoccupied with left wing geopolitical adventures. They are financing a ship to run the Israeli blockade and the have ongoing activity in Cuba. This extreme left-wing focus has consumed any ability
to seek a workable settlement for the average employee.
The best that any reasonable Canadian can hope for is that our Federal Government should stay away from the issue regardless of what takes place between management and Union. Let free collective bargaining take it's course and allow market forces to dictate any settlement.
The reason for the rolling strikes is that
some in the Union leadership are afraid a head to head all out strike will mean their quick demise.
Again, make sure Government stays out of it and let free collective bargaining and the market place deal with the battle. They are not an essential service, so why worry about it!
Finally, dmorris has the right idea, go back and read his post!
I want to make clear that I've never met a mean postie. When I say poor service, I mean that service that I've paid for like address forwarding has been less than perfect. I notice when I get no mail on Monday and then a lot of mail Tuesday. I know what is going on. Then there are the missing packages and tooth pulling trying to track down missing items from impudent socialists in another language.
Sure, sure. Mail is cheap, but I can live without. I really can.
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