Canada Post workers in Hamilton walk off the job

The rotating strikes by Canada Post have hit Hamilton.

More than 1,800 Canada Post workers walked off the job in Hamilton, and La Mauricie, Quebec overnight as the union’s overtime ban takes effect across Canada Thursday morning.

The Hamilton workers join CUP-W locals still off the job in rotating strikes in a dozen other communities in the Ottawa area, Quebec and on Vancouver island.

The new overtime ban means postal workers can refuse to work beyond their normal eight-hour days.

Canada Post says the scattered walkouts have caused a backlog of deliveries with more than 150 trailers filled with parcels and packages sitting in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver waiting to be unloaded and processed.

A Canada Post spokesman says the backup, the overtime ban and the continued strikes mean customers can expect delivery delays lasting several days.

The workers’ union is fighting for concessions on health and safety issues, equality and an end to precarious work. Canada Post says it has a significant offer on the table which includes increased wages, job security and improved benefits.