Canada Post has parted ways with three senior executives and eliminated a total of five senior roles in the wake of a country-wide strike last year.
According to an internal memo obtained by the Star, chief financial officer Jan Faryaszewski, senior vice president of corporate communications Jo-Anne Polak and vice president of business transformation Ian Kerr have left the company effective immediately.
Canada Post CEO Doug Ettinger said in the memo that the changes will “enhance decision-making by reducing layers and bringing new, strategic perspectives to the table.”
“These decisions were not easy, but they reflect the financial realities we face as a corporation and are effective immediately,” Ettinger wrote.
In a written statement to the Star, Canada Post said the decision to shake up the executive suite wasn’t related to the strike but was a reflection of the organization’s “significant financial and operational challenges.”
“The company informed employees on Thursday that it had completed a reorganization of the senior leadership team and was eliminating 5 senior executive positions as a result. As well, any resulting vacancies were filled internally,” the statement said.
“These are always difficult decisions, but are designed to help the corporation streamline decision making and deliver the changes needed to secure the future of the postal system.”
According to his Canada Post biography, Faryaszewski was appointed CFO in 2021 after holding the same position at Molson Coors Canada.
Polak, who once served as the general manager of the CFL’s Ottawa Rough Riders, had been with the company since 2008, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Kerr joined the Crown corporation in 2008, according to his company biography.
As of mid-morning Friday, the biographies and headshots of all three executives remained on the corporation’s website.
Roughly 55,000 Canada Post employees went on a month-long strike late last year before being ordered back to work by the Canada Industrial Relations Board following a request from federal labour minister Steven MacKinnon.
MacKinnon also appointed an “industrial inquiry commission,” which will have until May 22 to probe potential ways to reach a new contract agreement.
Until then, the strike, which began on Nov. 15, will be on pause and workers and management will operate under the terms of the existing contract, which expired more than a year ago.
The union initially called for a cumulative wage hike of 24 per cent over four years, as well as suggesting that Canada Post expand into banking. The union later lowered its wage demands to a 19 per cent increase over four years, but the company still balked.
The company is seeking to provide weekend deliveries and have a greater share of its staff working part-time. The union wants full-time workers to do weekend delivery, while the company wants to hire part-time staff to do the job.
