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This article was published 7/12/2010 (3585 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Canada Post has brought in supervisors and retirees from across the country to deliver holiday mail in Winnipeg.

A local union official said the development is part of the ongoing fallout from the introduction of a new mail delivery system, but a company spokeswoman said that is only one factor that contributed to the decision to bring in outsiders.

"It's not uncommon for us to hire during the Christmas season, but we are hiring back some retirees and we're trying to get help from employees throughout the country," said Canada Post spokeswoman Kathi Neal. "We may spend more than we normally do in Winnipeg in order to ensure we get our Christmas mail delivered in time, but we're going to do what we need to do to make sure Winnipeggers get their holiday mail."

Neal confirmed that in addition to the 50 temporary letter carriers Canada Post normally hires during the Christmas season, the Crown corporation brought in 20 additional individuals -- retirees and supervisors, all of them from outside Winnipeg and most from across the Prairie region, along with some from other parts of the country. She confirmed that these individuals are being put up in a hotel at the Crown corporation's expense.

"We may spend more money than we normally do in Winnipeg in order to cover the cost (of delivering Christmas mail), but we're going to cover the cost very carefully," Neal said.

Bob Tyre, president of the Winnipeg local of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), said the additional staff are required to replace the high number of letter carriers who have been injured since the introduction of the multiple-bundle delivery method. The new system requires them to carry two bundles of mail. Carriers have said this can hinder their vision, which can be particularly critical in winter.

The union has repeatedly suggested the new method be suspended over the holiday season in order to deliver the mail in an efficient manner, said Tyre.

Neal said covering off the letter carriers injured as a result of the new delivery method is only one of the reasons for bringing people from outside Winnipeg.

Neal said other factors are the unusually large amount of snowfall in November that has hampered delivery, the increase in mail volumes at this time of year, and normal staff shortages caused by retirements.

aldo.santin@freepress.mb.ca