Postal Workers in Kitchener-Waterloo walked off the job on Monday morning as the rotating strikes by Canada Post employees across the country continue to be in effect.
CUPW announced the job action on its Twitter feed early Monday morning.
The Canada Post labour negotiations affect around 50,000 employees across the country.
READ MORE: Canada Post’s rotating strikes: Everything you need to know about it
The rotating strikes continue after the union rejected Canada Post’s latest offer and requested that a mediator be appointed by the government in hopes of ending the dispute.
WATCH: Businesses push federal government to resolve Canada Post strike
A spokesperson for Labour Minister Patty Hajdu wouldn’t say whether Ottawa would oblige the request for a mediator, but indicated it was a good sign that both sides remained committed to finding a solution.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a last-minute plea to the two sides late Saturday to resolve their differences, just hours before the midnight deadline on the Crown corporation’s offers expired.
READ MORE: Canadian postal workers strike could be a long one, according to union official
The strikes have created a huge backlog of undelivered mail, prompting some businesses to issue pleas for a resolution ahead of the busy Christmas shopping season.
The Retail Council of Canada urged Ottawa to “bring an immediate end” to the rotating strikes through back-to-work legislation.
Last week, eBay also called on the government to legislate an end to the dispute in time for Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales events tied to the American Thanksgiving.
–With files from Global News