Canadian Union of Postal Workers
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| Full name | Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1965 |
| Members | 54,000 (2006) |
| Affiliation | CLC |
| Key people | Mike Palecek, president |
| Office location | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada |
| Country | Canada |
| Website | www.cupw-sttp.org |
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW; French: Syndicat des travailleurs et travailleuses des postes) is a public sector trade union representing postal workers employed at Canada Post as well as private sector workers outside Canada Post. According to a number of analyses, "With a radical leadership and an active rank-and-file, CUPW had become the very model of a militant union."
The union has approximately 54,000 members and has a long history of militancy originating in 1965 when the union was formed out of the old Canadian Postal Employees Association. CUPW's first major strike was an illegal wildcat strike in 1965 (before public sector workers had the right to strike or even form unions) and is the largest illegal strike involving government employees. The action succeeded in winning the right to collective bargaining for all public sector employees. Other major industrial actions included a strike in 1968 and a campaign of walkouts in 1970 that resulted in above average wage increases. Further strikes in 1974 and 1975 succeeded in gaining job security in the face of new technology at the post office. A 1978 strike resulted in CUPW president Jean-Claude Parrot being jailed when the union defied back-to-work legislation passed by the Canadian parliament. CUPW's defiance of the law caused a temporary rift between it and the more conservative Canadian Labour Congress. In 1981, after another strike, CUPW became the first federal civil service union in Canada to win the right to maternity leave for its members.
In 1981, Canada Post was transformed from a government department to a crown corporation, fulfilling a long-standing demand by the union. It was hoped that by becoming a crown corporation governed by the Canada Labour Code, relations between Canada Post and its union would improve. While strike action has been less frequent, there were rotating strikes in 1987 and 1991 against plans to privatize postal outlets, both of which were ended by back-to-work legislation and also saw attempts by Canada Post to break the strike using scabs.
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Wikipedia