After more than nine months of bargaining, Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers reached a tentative deal last night.
The new agreements are for two years rather than the four-year agreements that were negotiated in the past, and 50,000 postal workers will still have to ratify them before they become new contracts. However, the union is not releasing details just yet.
“We can’t give details of the agreement at this time, but we’re pleased that our members don’t have to resort to taking job action,” said Mike Palecek, national president of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers, in a statement.
Read: Postal workers delay possible job action for 24 hours as contract talks continue
Canada Post echoed its satisfaction with the outcome in its release. “This approach provides more time for thoughtful discussion and analysis on how to best address these issues without the ongoing threat of a work disruption.”
The employer and union have been in disagreement since last year over changes to workers’ pay and benefits. Specifically, pensions have been a contentious point with Canada Post seeking to close its defined benefit plan to new employees and offer them a defined contribution plan instead.
Read: Removing pension issues a solution to Canada Post stalemate: prof
As of last week, both sides were still at a stalemate on key issues when Labour Minister MaryAnn Mihychuk appointed a special mediator, pushing the two sides to negotiate nearly around the clock.
“Together they winnowed down the outstanding issues, taking them one at a time, and solving each in turn,” said Mihychuk in a statement. “These tentative agreements, reached voluntarily by the parties, are an important reminder for us all that a fair and balanced collective bargaining process works and can achieve real results for Canadian workers and employers.”
Read: Canada Post labour dispute: A look at the company’s existing DC plan for some workers