Now is the time to draw inspiration from wherever we can, and stand with workers while they fight the employer-led race to the bottom.

  • puppinstuff@lemmy.ca
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    4 days ago

    Sell public-option banking and cell phone services at post office branches and you’d turn instant profit. Bigger branches could also carry dry grocery goods. There is so much more they could be doing other than trying to out-Bezos the mail.

    • chonglibloodsport@lemmy.world
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      2 days ago

      No you wouldn’t. Those are competitive industries, despite all the griping about Canadian banks and Rogers et al. Unless you’re going to turn Canada Post into a bank (and discontinue delivering mail) they’re not going to be viable just because you add banking service.

      65% of Canada Post’s costs are the salaries of postal workers. Letter volume has dropped from 5.5 billion to less than 2 billion over the past 2 decades. Since the strike began, plans are in motion for many businesses that send a lot of mail to switch to electronic. Plenty of businesses that send out millions of letters per year are using the strike as a kick in the butt to switch to electronic. When the strike ends the volume won’t even come close to getting back to 2 billion.

    • ErableEreinte@lemmy.ca
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      4 days ago

      Yes and yes.
      I’ve been mentioning France’s efforts to modernise their postal services, that also includes services aimed at helping older folks with daily/weekly interactions / home visits, and I think that would be a great thing to add to Canada Post rural offerings.

    • karlhungus@lemmy.ca
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      4 days ago

      Public option cell and Internet I’d be very down with, especially if they reclaimed the lines they paid bell and Rogers to lay