Talks between Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers are stalled on key issues including pay and pensions, with the union’s strike mandate expiring next week.

Mike Palecek, national president of postal workers’ union, said there’s been little movement even though the company removed the threat of a lockout of 50,000 members last month.

“It hasn’t been going well,” he said. “There has been very little movement at the table. They are asking for the ability to shut down 493 (corporate) post offices across the country. Obviously that’s a non-starter for us.”

The union’s strike mandate expires on Aug. 25, but Palecek said the union couldn’t just stay at the table indefinitely, without a strike vote in place.

It is looking at options right now, which could include asking the company to grant an extension or taking another vote.

“They are trying to wait us out, without negotiating,” he said. “They are not bargaining in a way that demonstrates they want a deal.”

For the union, organizing a strike vote for 50,000 is time consuming and costs hundreds of thousands of dollars. Without the mandate, the company could unilaterally make changes to work hours or vacation, and the union would not have the ability respond — such as walking off the job to stop such action.

“Our intent is not to shut things down or go out,” Palecek said. “But we have to have our bases covered to protect the membership.”

Canada Post spokesman Jon Hamilton agrees there has been little progress in talks.

“We continue to talk. We remain available to sit around the clock to hammer out a deal,” said Hamilton.

“The union has repeatedly assured Canadians that they do not want a strike. Therefore, letting the strike mandate expire on August 25th should not be an issue,” he said.

When asked whether Canada Post would consider resurrecting a lockout notice, Hamilton said the company is focused on getting a deal.

“Our goals haven’t changed. We are looking for deals that are fair to our employees but allow us to provide affordable services to our customers.”

Hamilton said the union is still looking for $1 billion in demands and refusing to accept the company’s proposal to move new hires to a defined contribution pension plan, from a defined benefit plan.

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While the threat of an immediate shutdown of the post office has subsided, Hamilton said customers remain nervous, given the uncertainty.

Some customers are still choosing alternatives to Canada Post, and others are holding off on long-term decisions such as launching a direct mail campaign, said Hamilton.

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