Canada Post CEO says he supports Ottawa's plan to shore up its shaky finances

In the letter, Ettinger said the labour situation is “extremely challenging” but the company remains committed to reaching new agreements at the bargaining table.

“The journey to restore and renew the postal service is now underway,” Ettinger said. “Canada Post remains a vital national institution — and Canadians deserve a postal service that is strong, stable and fits their needs.”

Procurement Minister Joël Lightbound announced sweeping changes on Sept. 25 to stop Canada Post from bleeding money as mail volumes plummet.

Four million Canadians will see their service switch from door-to-door delivery to a community mailbox model over the next nine years, and daily weekday delivery for all will end.

Following question period Wednesday, House of Commons Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia denied a request from the NDP and Bloc Québécois for an emergency debate on the future of Canada Post.

“That said, I know that this is a subject of great interest to many members,” Scarpaleggia said in French. “I am open to reconsidering this request at a further date if the situation compels.”

Ettinger said in his letter that converting more households to community mailboxes will lead to “significant savings.” He also said that while the company needs to update its retail network, Canada Post is committed to protecting services in rural, remote, northern and Indigenous communities.

Ettinger also said the company needs to be leaner and pointed to attrition as a way to reduce its size.

“Serving a country as large as Canada will always be labour-intensive, but we’re overstaffed,” he said. “With thousands of employees eligible to retire over the next five years, we can minimize the impact on our people.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney expressed his commitment to Canada Post on Wednesday, calling the postal service “essential.”

“We need a viable postal service,” Carney said during question period. “Currently, the situation is difficult. Canada Post is losing millions of dollars. We need to take action, we need to restructure.”

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers took to the picket lines Thursday after Ottawa announced the overhaul.

Speaking to The Canadian Press on Monday, Hajdu did not rule out federal intervention to end the strike. She also said Canada Post needs to put a new offer on the table quickly and the union needs to consider any proposal seriously.

She said it’s up to the two sides to come together after nearly two years of bargaining to chart a new course for the struggling postal service.

Canada Post’s financial situation is dire and the company claims it was losing upwards of $10 million per day over the summer as labour uncertainty stretched on. The postal service has relied on federal support to keep the lights on in recent years.

An industrial inquiry commission report earlier this year found the Crown corporation was effectively insolvent and suggested a host of measures to keep it afloat — suggestions the federal government adopted wholesale in its announcement last week.

With files from Craig Lord, Alessia Passafiume and Dylan Robertson.