Canada Post is a Crown Corporation that reports to the Minister of State for Transportation, Infrastructure and Communities under the Honourable Rob Merrifield. Canada Post is not run by the Government of Canada, but is directed by a Board that is independent from Government. Here are some facts about Canada Post.

Canada’s postage fees are the third lowest in the industrialized world.  Despite our large geographical challenges, we enjoy 96% on-time delivery performance; 10.8 billion pieces of mail delivered annually to 15 million residences; 21 major mail processing plants; a 7,000 vehicle fleet; and 71,000 employees. In 2009, Canada Post was in their 15th consecutive year of earning a profit.  Their annual revenue was $7.3B (90% of revenue from businesses) with more than $1.4B in federal taxes and $1.1B in provincial personal income taxes annually. In the past ten years Canada Post has paid the Government of Canada almost $400M in income taxes and over $350M in dividends.
Canada Post is experiencing a decrease in revenues ($528M in 2009) due to Canadian internet usage and a more competitive market.  With 200,000 new addresses added every year and the decrease in volumes, Canada Post has had to review its operations and determine how to operate in this new market.

Management has cut planned operating costs by $540M in 2009; eliminated 14% of management positions in 2009-2010; cut discretionary spending (IT, travel, advertising and consulting) and put an increased reliance on subsidiaries for service delivery. Yet with all these measures Canada Post needs to do more to compete in the market.

Most of Canada Post’s infrastructure is 40 years old and their systems have lagged behind their international competitors in Europe and the USA which have undergone major transformations in recent years to realize productivity improvements and cost savings.
Canada Post is investing currently $2B to modernize their operations. New plants were built in Winnipeg and Vancouver and automated parcel/packet processing in major cities. Investments in new generation lettermail processing equipment will allow Canada Post to further sequence letter delivery. A new delivery model and equipment with fuel efficient vehicles will support a more efficient and effective delivery service to the customer.

Some constituents have told me to support privatizing Canada Post. Do you think a private company is going to provide service to a remote community when it is not a paying proposition? 

Canada Post’s mandate is to ensure postal delivery to all Canadians. By being a Crown Corporation, Canada Post has the ability to be free of political interference and yet operate postal delivery within the policy guidelines of government to provide essential service levels to the Canadian public. Considering all of the challenges, they do a great job. 

MP Colin Mayes
Okanagan-Shuswap