Dozens of people gathered on the front steps of City Hall on Monday in support of Canada Post workers nationwide.
Since Oct. 22, members of the Canadian Union for Postal Workers (CUPW) have been rotating strikes across the country, putting pressure on the national postal services to reach a collective agreement that suits the union’s demands.
On Sunday, just a day before the rally, the rotating strikes finally arrived in London, with workers walking out just after 10 p.m.
Rallying continues on the front steps of City Hall in support of Canada Post workers on rotating strikes across the country #LdnOnt pic.twitter.com/Q3x02D7tOl
— XFM News (@XFMNews) November 5, 2018
Speaking at the rally on Monday, president of the CUPW’s London local Karen Finlay-Russell told XFM News that workers are often forced to work excruciating hours.
“I had a letter carrier call me and I cried when she talked to me,” said Finlay-Russell.
“She said, ‘my kids think I’m a bad mom because I don’t get home until after they go to bed and I’m gone in the morning before they get up’.”
For postal workers Pauline Peterson, health concerns are often overlooked for her colleagues.
“We end up with a lot of back injuries, leg injuries, knee injuries, foot injuries… we definitely need to do something about that,” said Peterson.
Londoners can expect to see striking postal workers for the next several days, but the local strike will only last for several days before shifting to other communities.
Along with increased safety and a more reasonable workload, the union is also calling for better wages and the hiring for more full-time staff.
There’s been no indication on when a collective agreement is expected to be reached.
