After a month-long Canada Post strike, some rural communities say they are still feeling its effects and wanti better long-term mail solutions.
During the strike, some people in rural communities that rely on mail delivery had long waits for things like cheques, baby formula, and medication.
And those communities can expect to continue seeing delays for the next few weeks as workers clear the backlog of letters and parcels, the company said.
Rob Weidman, a councillor for Parkland County representing Wabamun, Alta., told CBC that the private delivery options in his community have been successfully filling the gap.
“In my area, in the rural areas, we see Amazon and Loomis and other companies delivering out there privately and they’re doing a good job of it. They get to areas where you wouldn’t even expect delivery.”
Canada Post released an operations update on its website Monday, saying that it is still experiencing delays in rural areas.
“Employees are making their best effort to stabilize delivery operations in rural and remote areas. The accumulated volumes are now being prepared for delivery,” the statement said.
“For items being transported over longer distances, delays should be expected into early January given the significant volume. We will share more details in the coming days on how we are progressing in these areas.”
In a news release earlier this month, the company said it was clearing its backlog by sending things that have been in warehouses the longest first.
Weidman said many small businesses were affected by the strike in his area, especially with it happening so close to the holiday season.
Cameron Cardinal, a councillor for Mackenzie County in northern Alberta, said his community relies on Canada the strike added a lot of stress to an already precarious mail situation.
Because his community is so far north, they sometimes have to wait a long time for mail, and plan far in advance for sending packages, he said.
“With this added delay, it added a lot of stress to people in our community because we rely heavily on Canada Post for anything that we order from anywhere in the south,” he said.
He said many in his area paid extra for private couriers, on top of the high cost of living in a northern community.
Province makes changes in wake of backlog
The Canada Post strike also created delays for Albertans trying to get a new driver’s licence, though the province has enacted some temporary measures to help fill the gap until the licences can be delivered.
“In rare cases where Albertans urgently needed their driver’s licence or ID card for travel, arrangements were made to courier the documents directly to individuals,” Brandon Aboultaif, press secretary for the minister of Service Alberta and red tape reduction, said in an email.
“To address concerns during the disruption, interim driver’s licences that expired between November 1, 2024, and January 14, 2025, were formally extended by the Registrar of Motor Vehicle Services to expire on February 15, 2025.”
Albertans who needed it were given access to a control number from their driver’s licence or ID card to make it easier to renew or set up an account for MyAlberta eServices, Aboultaif said.
