SASKATOON – Many residents in one of Saskatoon’s oldest and most densely-populated neighbourhoods have responded positively to Canada Post’s plans to temporarily suspend door-to-door delivery.
READ MORE: Canada Post suspends community mailbox program
Canada Post announced Monday that the move away from door-to-door would be put on hold, coming a week after the federal election. Prime minister designate Justin Trudeau previously pledged to pause the program and review it.
“For me personally, it’s not that big of a deal, but I do think of a lot of the older people,” said Jennifer Chabot, who also lives in City Park.
In Saskatoon, the decision means an estimated 30 to 40 letter carriers who were facing job cuts, will remain employed, according to Julee Sanderson, president of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) Local 824.
“Canada Post has an obligation to Canadians. Canada Post is a public service and it’s a decent public service that has paid dividends into the public coffers for years,” Sanderson said.
Nationwide, the CUPW said 8,000 jobs will be spared. It’s not clear how much money the pause will cost.
“Efforts are now underway to place the comprehensive program on hold in an orderly fashion. This involves roughly 460,000 addresses across the country which are currently in the process of being converted to community mailboxes,” Canada Post said in a statement Monday.
Community mailboxes have already been installed in Prince Albert, Yorkton, Moose Jaw and Estevan. Residents in those areas will continue to receive mail at the shared boxes.
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