'Canada Post Corporation ' (
French: 'Société canadienne des postes') is a
Canadian postal service operated as a
crown corporation. The successor to the
Post Office Department of the
Government of Canada, Canada Post was created on
October 16,
1981 by the ''Canada Post Corporation Act''
[1] to set a new direction for the postal service, creating more reliable service and ensuring the postal service's financial security and independence
[1].
About Canada Post
Canada Post trucks in Edmonton
Every business day, Canada Post provides service to 14 million addresses
[2], delivering 40 million items
. Delivery takes place via traditional "to the door" service by 15,000 letter carriers, supplemented by approximately 6,000 vehicle routes in rural and suburban areas, and
truck delivery of parcels in urban areas. There are 6,800 post offices across the country, a combination of corporate offices and franchises which are operated by private retailers in conjunction with a host retail business, such as a drugstore. In terms of area serviced, Canada Post delivers to a larger area than the postal service of any other nation, including
Russia (where service in
Siberia is limited largely to communities along the railroad).
On a consolidated basis, the Corporation processed 11.6 billion pieces during year 2006. Consolidated revenue from operations reached $7.3 billion and consolidated net income totalled $119 million
[3]. To compete effectively, Canada Post operates as a group of companies called The Canada Post Group. It employs 72,000 full and part-time employees to deliver a full range of delivery, logistics and fulfillment services to customers. The Corporation holds an interest in
Purolator Courier,
Innovapost, Progistix-Solutions and Canada Post International Limited.
[4]
''Canada Post'' ''(French: Postes Canada)'' is the
Federal Identity Program name. The legal name is ''Canada Post Corporation'' in
English and ''Société canadienne des postes'' in
French.
History
:''See also
Postage stamps and postal history of Canada''
Mail delivery first started in Canada in
1693 when 'Pedro da Silva' was paid to deliver mail between
Quebec City and
Montreal. Official postal services began in
1775, under the control of the
British Government up to
1851. The first postage stamp (designed by Sir
Sandford Fleming) went into circulation in Canada that same year. It wasn't until
1867 when the newly formed
Dominion of Canada created the 'Post Office Department' as a federal government department (The ''Act for the Regulation of the Postal Service''). It took effect
April 1,
1868, providing uniform postal service throughout the newly established country. The Canadian post office was designed around the British service as created by Sir
Rowland Hill, who introduced the concept of charging mail by weight and not destination along with creating the concept of the
postage stamp.
Canada Post started early with
airmail, with the first airmail flight taking place on
June 24,
1918 carrying mail from Montreal to Toronto. Regular airmail service began in 1928.
The
1970s was a tough decade for Canada Post, with major strikes combined with annual deficits that had hit $600 million by 1981. This state of affairs made politicians want to rethink their strategy for the federal department. It resulted in two years of public debate and input into the future of mail delivery in Canada. The government sought to give the post office more autonomy, in order to make it more commercially viable and to compete against the new threat of private courier services. On
October 16,
1981, the Federal Parliament passed the "Canada Post Corporation Act"
[2], which transformed Canada Post into a
Crown corporation to create the ''Canada Post Corporation (CPC)''. The legislation also includes a measure that legally guarantees basic postal service to all Canadians. It stipulates that all Canadians have the right to expect mail delivery, regardless of where they live.
Several historical sites related to the history of Canada Post can be visited today. In
Ontario, the
first Toronto Post Office is still in operation. The site of the
Air Canada Centre was once the Canada Post Delivery Building. Also notable are the
Vancouver Main Post Office and the
Dawson, Yukon, Post Office, a
National Historic Site of Canada.
Timeline
Stamp issued by Canada Post to commemorate:"Pedro da Silva dit le Portugais, 1705, First Courier in New France"
★ '
1693' - First paid mail delivery within Canada
★ '
1775' - British Government begins offering mail service in Canada
★ '
1851' - Canadian Government takes control of mail delivery
★ '
1867' - Canada Post is created as a federal department
★ '
1878' - Canada Post joins
Universal Postal Union
★ '
1957' - Dr. Maurice Levy invents the automatical postal sorter, which could handle 200,000 letters per hour.
★ '
1971' - Initial implementation of the
postal code
★ '
1981' - Canada Post Corporation Act is passed by Parliament
★ '
1981' - Canada Post is turned into a Crown Corporation
★ '
1993' - Canada Post purchases a majority stake in
Purolator Courier
★ '
2006' - Introduction of the
Permanent Stamp, a stamp that is always worth the basic domestic mailing rate.
Mail format
PO Box, Edmonton
Any letter sent within Canada has the destination
address on the centre of its envelope, with a
stamp,
postal indicia, meter label, or
frank mark on the top-right corner of the envelope to acknowledge payment of postage. A
return address, although it is not required, can be put on the top-left corner of the envelope in smaller type than the destination address.
Official addressing protocol is for the address to be in
block letters, using a fixed-pitch typeface (such as Courier). The first line(s) of the address contains the personal name and internal address of the recipient. The second-to-last line is the post office box, general delivery indicator, or street address, using the shortened name of the street type and no punctuation. The last line consists of the legal place name, a single space, the two-letter province abbreviation, two full spaces, and then the
postal code. If mailed within
Canada, the country is not necessarily indicated at the bottom.
Examples:
''the provided name is fictitious''
JOHN JONES
MARKETING DEPT
10-321 1/2 MAIN ST W
MONTRÉAL QC H3Z 2Y7
| JOHN JONES
1234 MAIN ST
PO BOX 4001 STN A
VICTORIA BC V8X 3X4 |
JOHN JONES
1234 7TH CONCESSION
SITE 6 COMP 10
RR 8 STN MAIN
MILLARVILLE AB T0L 1K0 | JOHN JONES
GD STN MAIN
WALKERTON ON N0G 2V0 |
Major products and services
The Corporation has a directory of all its products and services called the
Postal Guide and has divided its range of services into three main categories: Transction Mail, Parcels and Direct Marketing.
Transaction mail
The 'lettermail' service allows the transmission of virtually any paper document. The basic rate is currently set at 52 cents for one standard letter (30g or less) and is regulated by a price-cap formula, linked to the inflation rate
[5]. The Corporation has recently introduced a “permanent” stamp that retains its value forever, eliminating the need to buy 1 cent stamps after a rate increase.The rates for lettermail are based or weight and size and determine whether the article falls into the aforementioned standard format, or in the oversize one.
Canada Post maintains that Canada has one of the lowest basic letter rates in the world
[6]
Mail sent internationally is known as 'letterpost'. It can only contain paper documents (See Light Packet and Small Packet below). The rate for a standard letter is of 93 cents if sent to the United States, and $1.55 if sent to any other destination.
Parcels
Domestic
Canada Post offers four domestic parcel services. The rates are based on distance, weight and size. The maximum acceptable weight is 30kg.
A Canada Post delivery truck in Montreal.
'Regular Parcel'
★ Delivery time ranges from 2 to 9 days depending on the destination.
'Expedited Parcel'
★ Avaiable only to commercial customers.
★ Delivery time ranges from 1 to 7 days depending on the destiantion.
'Xpresspost'
★ Is a service for parcels and documents.
★ Delivery time ranges from 1 to 2 days between major centres.
'Priority Courier'
★ Is a service for parcels and documents.
★ Provides next day service between major centres.
International
'Light Packet'
★ Compensates for the fact that goods are prohibited in the letterpost(regular mail) service.
★ Maximum weight is 500g .Maximum dimensions are 380mm x 270mm x 20mm.
★ Rates based on weight and destination (USA or international).
'Small Packet'
★ Air and surface services are available.
★ Maximum weight is 1kg (USA) and 2kg (International).
'Expedited Parcel USA'
★ Available for items sent to American addresses only.
★ Despite its name, does not provide any service guarantee.
★ The maximum acceptable weight is 30 kg.
'Xpresspost-USA and International'
★ Provides speedy and guarenteed delivery to addresses in the United States.
★ Provides accelerated delivery to certain countries.
★ Maximum weight is 30kg (USA) and 20 to 30kg (depending on the international destination).
'International Parcel'
★ Air and surface service available.
★ Provides delivery to countries to which Xpresspost is not available.
Direct marketing
'Addressed Admail'
★ Promotional mailings targeted to specific residents.
★ Minimum quantity of 1,000 articles.
'Unaddressed Admail'
★ Consists of printed matter and product samples that are not addressed to specific delivery addresses in Canada, but to specific neighbourhoods or cities.
Digital postage meter
Effective
June 30 2007, Canada Post requires
[7] that all
postage meters be digital, with a Postage Security Device. The Digital Postage Meter prints a 2D
barcode in the meter impression, strengthening security.
Choosing Canada’s stamps
Although Canada Post is responsible for stamp design and production, the corporation does not actually choose the subjects or the final designs that appear on stamps
.That task falls under the jurisdiction of the Stamp Advisory Committee. Their objective is to recommend a stamp program that will have broad-based appeal, regionally and culturally, reflecting Canadian history, heritage, and tradition
[8].
Before Canada Post calls a meeting of the committee, it also welcomes suggestions for stamp subjects from Canadian citizens. Ideas for subjects that have recently appeared on a stamp are declined. The committee works two years in advance and can approve approximately 20 subjects for each year
[9].
Once a stamp subject is selected, Canada Post’s Stamp Products group conducts research. Designs are commissioned from two firms, both chosen for their expertise. The designs are presented anonymously to the committee
[9].The committee’s process and selection policy have changed little in the thirty years since it was introduced.
Noted stamps
★ Definitives:
Queen Elizabeth II definitive stamp (Canada)
★ 2005:
Acadian Deportation,
Polio Vaccination
★ 2000:
Ritual of the Calling of an Engineer 
Ritual of the Calling of the Engineer
Major postal plant locations
★
Victoria, BC
★
Vancouver, BC
★
Richmond, BC
★
Calgary, AB
★
Edmonton, AB
★
Saskatoon, SK
★
Regina, SK
★
Winnipeg, MB
★
Windsor, ON
★
London, ON (London Processing Plant LMPP 951/955 Highbury Avenue)
★
Kitchener, ON
★
Hamilton, ON
★
Mississauga, ON
★
Toronto, ON
★
Ottawa, ON
★
Montreal, QC
★
Quebec, QC (scheduled to close in spring 2008)
★
Saint John, NB - Rothesay Avenue
★
Fredericton, NB
★
Moncton, NB
★
Halifax, NS - Almon Street
★
St. John's, NL Kenmount Road
Organizational issues
Labour troubles
Canada Post has a history of troubled
labour relations with its
trade unions, particularly the
Canadian Union of Postal Workers and the Letter Carriers Union of Canada (which merged with CUPW in 1989) culminating in periodic
strike action which has brought mail service in Canada to a halt. There have been at least 19 strikes, lockouts and walkouts between 1965 and 2005 including several
wildcat strikes. A number of these strikes have seen the corporation employ
strikebreakers and most, since the
1970s, have resulted in back-to-work legislation being passed by the
Canadian parliament.
Canada Post was also the setting for one of the most controversial labour rulings of recent years. After several prosecutions for theft at
Mississauga's Gateway Postal Plant, the union won a ruling from a labour board that the workers involved could not be dismissed as the length of the investigation exceeded the ten-day limit in the collective agreement under which any allegation of misconduct had to be brought to the attention of the worker. Although the ruling was reversed on appeal, the
Ontario Court of Appeal ruled that although the decision may have been incorrect, it was not so totally without merit that the labour board's decision should be overturned . The court noted the language was in the collective agreement to keep supervisors from holding infractions over the head of a worker indefinitely.
Recently, however, Canada Post has begun to emerge from its labour troubles. In 2007, the corporation was named one of
Canada's Top 100 Employers, as published in
Maclean's magazine.
[11]
See also
★
List of communities in Newfoundland and Labrador for early community postal information, including dates, locations and names.
★
Canada Post Tags and Labels on Commons
Footnotes
1. Canada Post Corporation Act Part I Section 5
2. 2006 Annual Report About Us-Page 1
3. 2006 Annual Report-Highlights
4. Canada Post-Fast Facts
5. Under the price-cap formula approved by the federal government in 2000, basic letter rate increases, when warranted, will not exceed 66.67 per cent of inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index from May prior to the last increase to May of the current year. Increases will be implemented no more than once a year, in January, and announced no later than July 1 in the year before the increase goes into effect in the Canada Gazette Part I.
6. 2006 Annual Report-About us-Page 2
7. Canada Post-Meter Replacement Program
8. Canada's Stamp Details, pp.16-17, January to March 2005, Volume XIV, No. 1
9. a
10. a
11. Reasons for Selection, 2007 Canada's Top 100 Employers
External links
★
Canada Post Website
★
Canada Post Website '(French)'
★
Canadian Postal Archives - History site run by the Government of Canada
★
Library and Archives Canada - Various links to history of Canada Post websites (Run by the Government of Canada)
★
Universal Postal Union homepage
Personnel representation
★
Association of Postal Officials of Canada
★
Canadian Postmasters and Assistants Association
★
Canadian Union of Postal Workers
★
Public Service Alliance of Canada
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