A Canada Post worker has died after testing positive for coronavirus amid an outbreak a mail facility in Mississauga, officials said Wednesday.
In a statement, the postal service said the employee, who worked at the Gateway facility located near Dixie Road and Eglinton Avenue, last worked on Jan. 18.
“We offer our deepest sympathies to the family as they mourn the loss and respect their privacy during this difficult time,” the statement said.
“We are focused on supporting our employees who have lost a colleague while ensuring we continue to stringently follow the guidance and direction from Peel Public Health.”
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) told Global News the male employee worked the night shift.
The union said while night shift employees haven’t been mandated to get tested for COVID-19, the worker decided to.
He hasn’t been identified. His exact cause of death is not yet known, the union said.
“It is a very sad day for postal workers,” a CUPW statement said.
“It is a unnecessary loss of life and our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends. This tragedy under scores why we have been insisting to the government that postal workers are indeed frontline workers.”
As of Wednesday, 250 employees at Canada Post’s Gateway facility have tested positive for coronavirus since Jan. 1.