Canada Post lost $205 million in the first quarter of 2026, up from a $41 million loss in the same period last year.
The Crown corporation blamed an ongoing labour dispute for the size of the loss, saying uncertainty hit its parcel business especially hard.
“This uncertainty for customers continued to weigh on parcels results in the first quarter,” Canada Post said in a press release Friday afternoon.
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers, whose members wrap up voting on a tentative contract agreement Saturday, blasted the Crown corporation in a written statement.
“The latest quarterly results reflect years of bad management decision making, and repeated government interventions in the bargaining process,” the union said.
“Canada Post needs to stop blaming workers for its financial situation. … Had Canada Post increased stamp prices to meet inflation and international benchmarks years ago, it wouldn’t find itself in such a precarious financial situation.”
Parcel revenue fell by $79 million, or 17.1 per cent, mail revenue dropped $82 million or 13.7 per cent, while flyer revenue dropped $24 million, or 13.4 per cent in the first quarter of this year compared to 2025.
But the Crown corporation acknowledged that 2025’s first quarter benefited from an increase in volumes and revenue because of a strike in the fourth quarter of 2024, as well as last year’s federal election.
“The results were…affected by year-over-year comparisons to the first quarter of 2025, when letter mail volumes surged due to election mailings and a backlog following the labour disruption in late 2024,” the Crown corporation said.
The loss follows a record annual loss of $1.57 billion in 2025, the eighth straight year of red ink at the Crown Corporation.
The ongoing losses, said Canada Post, make its massive restructuring even more urgent.
“The multi-year transformation is essential for the company to move away from taxpayer-funded cash injections,” the Crown corporation said. “Canada Post is committed to moving forward with its transformation in a timely manner, while working closely with its (unions) and the Government of Canada.”
The restructuring plan includes eliminating home delivery for households which still have it, the increased use of community mailboxes, and the closure of some rural post offices.
In early May, the federal government approved $673 million in funding to help keep Canada Post afloat until next March. It was left over from a $1 billion injection given earlier this year. In 2025, the federal government also gave Canada Post a $1.03-billion cash injection.
