As Canada Post workers remain on the picket line, a key point of contention in their demands is their job’s growing physical and mental toll — and they say that’s exacerbated by climate change.
From delivering parcels through scorching heatwaves to battling blizzards, Canadian postal workers increasingly face extreme weather conditions that strain their bodies and minds.
“In recent years, climate change has shown a bit of a trend,” said Brahm Enslin, local president at CUPW Saskatoon Local 824.
“There was an ice storm and we had a rash of injuries,” Enslin added, referring to the storm last year in Saskatoon. “Members that broke their hip just by going out there.”
Enslin, 41, has worked at Canada Post for 16 years and said the extreme weather brought on by climate change — whether it’s inhaling smoke from wildfires or delivering mail during storms — has added significant physical and mental pressure to their jobs.
And that’s one of the reasons postal workers are demanding more support for these challenges in their new contract, he said.
The strike has been ongoing since Nov. 15, when Canada Post workers officially walked off the job after failing to reach an agreement with the Crown corporation. Since then, negotiations between the workers’ union and Canada Post have continued to break down.
One of the workers’ demands includes improvements to health and safety, such as lowering the maximum weight employees are required to lift or carry and ensuring the company provides snow tires for vehicles.
Also, workers are calling for measures to address climate change, such as negotiating and developing standards for working in extreme temperatures and weather conditions.
In an email to Global News on Tuesday, a spokesperson from Canada Post said the health and safety of its people remains their top priority.
“In the past few years alongside CUPW, we have put a strong emphasis on prevention measures regarding workplace health and safety incidents. These discussions take place daily on a national level and on the local level with team leaders and representatives of the Local Joint Health and Safety Committee,” the spokesperson said.
As climate change leads to more frequent wildfire seasons and rising temperatures, workers told Global News they want the company to better prepare for the changing weather and prioritize their health and safety.
Philip Schatz, 60, has been working as a letter carrier with Canada Post in Penticton, B.C., for the past eight years.
He said he is still recovering from whiplash sustained last December when he fell and struck his head on concrete while on the job. Although he finished his shift after the fall, he later had to go to the emergency room and was diagnosed with whiplash.
“That’s my third whiplash injury on duty for Canada Post,” he told Global News.
“And as a result of that, I was in physiotherapy for six months this year. And then [Canada Post] determined that they weren’t going to cover any more treatments, so now I’m essentially screwed. My neck will never really recover from the damage that it suffered. So basically I’m just going to have to live with it.”
Being a letter carrier in B.C. often means navigating steep hills and hazardous driveways, especially in areas like Penticton where many homeowners have stamped concrete, Schatz explained.
These surfaces can become dangerously slick in icy or damp conditions, he said, making them even more treacherous, turning frosty mornings into potential safety hazards.
“When it’s a frosty morning out, they are truly a death trap,” Schatz said.
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Not only do extreme cold conditions make it harder to walk up driveways or climb stairs, he said, but the intense heat combined with the wildfires B.C. experiences is making it worse each year.
“The extreme temperatures have gotten much worse over the last few years,” he said. “And then of course that paired with the smoke and wildfires, these are dangerous conditions to work in,” he said.
Schatz, who suffers from asthma, said he stays home on smoky days. However, when he returns to work the next day, he finds himself with twice as much mail to deliver, making it feel like taking the time off wasn’t worth it.
And on extremely hot days when a letter carrier can walk up to 30 km in a shift, he added that workers usually carry just one water bottle because carrying more isn’t realistic; that’s because they’re also hauling around 35 pounds of mail in their bag.
Enslin echoed this sentiment, saying a new challenge for letter carriers is walking in the smoke from wildfires.
“And we know that the effects of the smoke, you don’t get that immediately. You don’t necessarily notice it right away, even though some members do report going home, coughing and having bronchial issues. But that’s something that can happen over time,” he said.
Canada Post told Global News that it recognizes that its delivery agents work in various weather conditions to serve all Canadians, and provides employees with a safe work environment and offers a multitude of preventive health and safety resources.
“Our delivery agents are asked to never put their safety in danger in order to deliver mail. They can decide to stop mail delivery if they determine the conditions are unsafe and are supported by their team leaders when they do make these decisions,” a spokesperson said, adding these conditions rage from forest fires, floods, snowstorms, freezing rain and extreme cold.
The union has demanded the full elimination of Canada Post’s “separate sort-from-delivery” system, which entails certain employees spending the entirety of their shifts sorting mail for letter carriers to go out and deliver — as opposed to carriers performing both tasks.
Previously, postal workers would sort their own mail before going out to deliver it, and Enslin said this would help break up the repetitiveness of the day.
Canada Post said it implemented the separate sort-from-delivery system in 2017 and it is now in place in 151 facilities.
“This allows us to meet the changing needs of Canadians while reducing congestion inside and outside of our depots and creating a safer workplace for our employees,” the spokesperson said.
But Enslin said this system overburdens carriers, forcing them to spend more time outdoors and potentially exposing them to extreme weather. Instead of dividing the tasks, letter carriers walk their entire shifts, putting additional stress on their hips, knees, and legs, leading to a lot of repetitive stress injuries.
“It’s long walking conditions and then a lot of repetitive sorting. And that’s all because of this sort of new plan that the corporation has been implementing,” he said.
Although walking may seem like a harmless task, Schatz said you are always on the lookout for hazards while delivering mail.
“You’re looking out for dogs, tripping hazards, branches that might be in the way and obstacles that people have left behind, like scooters in the middle of the walkway,” he said.
“Every single house or yard, you’re thinking of dogs, tripping, slipping, potholes. And then you get to the door that there are issues like the railings or stairs that might be rotting out.”
In addition to the physical demands, being a letter carrier also takes a toll on mental health, Enslin explained.
The job requires long hours, often in extreme weather conditions, which can lead to stress, burnout and anxiety.
“And this mental health has been something that we’ve been trying to champion over and over and over,” he said, adding this has especially been an issue for workers since the switch to separate sort from delivery.
He said this initiative has led many members to quit as the workload continues to increase.
“Now it’s repetitive stress all day for an eight-hour day. The old way split the work and would mitigate some of the concerns of the repetitive work,” Enslin said. “And this is part of the mental health issues, trying to pile more work into the people. So you end up with a lot more work with less time to do it, unfortunately.”
Schatz said that despite the mental and physical strain the job brings, a large percentage of postal workers love the community they work in and want nothing more than to return to work.
“We are deeply saddened by the impact this is having on everybody. But this is not just about us and trying to make our jobs safer. It’s about every worker’s safety. It’s about every worker’s rights, about everyone’s benefits that come from these fights that we have, these negotiations that we undertake. “
— with files from the Canadian Press