Online retail giant eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) is putting pressure on the federal government to end the ongoing rotating strikes by Canada Post workers.
eBay wants Ottawa to legislate an end to the Canada Post contract dispute before the holiday shopping season kicks into high-gear. The move by eBay appears to have worked, as just hours after the company complained, Canada Post management issued what it calls a "time-limited" contract offer to the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW).
Canada Post said it hopes to promptly end the rotating strikes that have created a backlog of undelivered parcels – many of them from online retailers such as eBay and Amazon Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN). The latest offer includes annual 2% wage increases, plus signing bonuses of up to $1,000 per employee.
The $650-million proposal also includes new job-security provisions, including for rural and suburban mail carriers who have complained about precarious employment, and a $10-million health and safety fund. But Canada Post says the measures are only affordable if a deal can be agreed to before the holiday shopping rush, so it has imposed a deadline of this Saturday (November 17) for CUPW members to accept the latest offer.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau warned last week that his government would look at "all options" to bring an end to the ongoing the labour dispute ahead of the busy Christmas shopping season.
