Collision of weather, holidays sets back mail delivery a week

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This article was published 20/04/2022 (1428 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A combination of blizzard shutdowns and a weekend bookended by federal holidays has left Winnipeg, Brandon and other parts of southern Manitoba with no mail delivery for the past week.

Against the backdrop of weather forecasts predicting more flurries over the next few days, Canada Post is currently digging itself out from the mountain of mail it has been left with.

Matthew Aitken, president of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers in Winnipeg, said Canada Post not only stopped the delivery of mail here starting last Wednesday, it also shut down its sorting plant near Winnipeg’s airport.

“That is unprecedented,” Aitken said Tuesday as letter carriers in the southern part of the province began deliveries for the first time in a week.

“Postal workers are going to be facing a huge backlog for sure… not delivering the mail is a crisis for some folks.”

Aitken said he expects there will be overtime work available for any postal worker who wants it.

“Letter carriers will manage their increased volumes this week so they aren’t injured or overworked by the end of the day,” he said.

Many businesses heeded forecasters’ warnings of likely historic snowfall amounts Wednesday and Thursday, deciding to shut down operations.

As much as 30 cm of snow was dumped on Winnipeg. Blowing snow in rural areas resulted in numerous highways being closed.

And, unlike a regular calendar week when mail delivery would have started again the following day, that wasn’t possible because it was Good Friday, followed by Easter Monday, a day off for most government and bank employees. And there is no regular mail delivery during the weekend.

Not too many years ago, a week with no mail delivery would have been devastating for businesses of all sizes, but the heads of local chambers of commerce say technology now means they are no longer as reliant on bills and payments going into physical mailboxes.

Loren Remillard, president and CEO of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce, said probably the last time mail was delayed this long was during the April blizzard in 1997, which led weeks later to the Flood of the Century.

“Back then there would have been some effect on business with no mail delivery,” Remillard said.

“With digital invoices and bill payment, so much is done electronically now.”

Chuck Davidson, president and CEO of the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce, agreed saying he hasn’t received any calls from members grumbling about the days long lack of mail delivery.

“I’m not sure how big of an issue it is today,” Davidson said.

Even a large mail customer such as Manitoba Hydro, which has more than 600,000 customers using electricity and almost 300,000 using natural gas, wasn’t bothered by the delay.

Hydro spokesman Bruce Owen said Canada Post warned them in advance the bills for about 25,000 customers were not going to be picked up last Thursday because of the storm.

Owen said those customers “would receive their energy bill one day later than usual. “There should still be ample time for these customers to pay before the due date.”

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca