Goals are to provide best service, protect employees

Some recent media reports - including (a Canadian Press story) in your newspaper - suggest that Canada Post has unilaterally instituted a policy to cease traditional rural mail delivery. This is inaccurate. We and our shareholder (the federal government) are committed to serving all Canadians - including rural residents - in the most convenient, safe way possible.
We instituted a review of rural mail delivery as a direct result of more than 1,300 complaints from our employees, along with 40 safety-related decisions from Labour Canada officers. Some Labour Canada decisions required us to cease delivery immediately. We are obliged by law to assess rural boxes to ensure they are safe, measured against a comprehensive set of criteria. We are doing this.
When we must cease traditional delivery, we always offer to work with those affected to find the best possible alternative. We have allotted between $475 million and $640 million in new spending over the next five years for rural delivery.
This amount is not, as your report suggests, solely to "assess" how we do so. A significant portion is devoted to providing alternatives - such as a second person in our delivery vehicles - in cases where we can then safely maintain traditional delivery.
At Canada Post, our two most important goals are to provide the best service possible - in a manner that also ensures the health and safety of our people.
Anthony Wilson-Smith
vice-president, communications
Canada Post