Friends and comrades,
In this week’s Dispatch, we are covering negotiations updates, a general strike questionnaire, upcoming committee meetings, upcoming educational opportunities, the RSMC flyer pay clawback, and a message from VP4 (RSMCs)
Before getting to that, the Canadian Labour Congress has released a petition to support the teachers (and workers) of Alberta who had their fundamental rights taken away by the UCP’s use of the notwithstanding clause. To sign the petition to tell Premier Danielle Smith to stop attacking our rights and freedoms, click HERE.
Also we just received news that Locals 041, 043, 044, 045, and 046 of AUPE, which represent Alberta Health Services, Assisted Living Alberta, Primary Care Alberta, Recovery Alberta, and Allan Gray Continuing Care have voted 98% to support strike action. The earliest these bargaining units could serve strike notice is November 17th. Given what has happened in Alberta recently, this will be something to keep our eyes on.
Solidarity,
Kyle Turner, Communications Officer
Find CUPW Local 730 on social media: TikTok | Instagram | Bluesky | YouTube | Facebook
Negotiations Updates
As of November 3rd, our negotiators have returned to the bargaining table. With the help of federal mediators, our negotiators are looking to find ways to overcome disagreements and advance negotiations. For now, rotating strikes continue and there are currently two regions with a flyer ban. To read the full bulletin, click HERE.
Prime Minister Mark Carney tabled his first budget this week. Amid his plan to cut thousands of jobs from the public service, Canada Post seems to have only come up once and that was to give the Corporation more control over setting postage rates. The increase in postage rates earlier this year led to $376-million in new revenue. Our union will comment further once the full details of the plan are shared. To read the full bulletin, click HERE.
General Strike Questionnaire
On October 27th, 2025, the UCP used the notwithstanding clause to end the Alberta Teachers’ Association strike. This is one of many attacks on workers’ rights in recent years, not just in Alberta but across Canada. On October 29th, the Alberta Federation of Labour and its allied unions announced that it would begin working toward toppling the UCP and building up to a general strike.
At our November 1st GMM, our Local voted to support the AFL in these efforts. Are you ready to stand up for workers? Please fill out the following questionnaire. All answers will remain confidential: LINK.
Committee Meetings
There are a number of upcoming committee meetings, including Education, Social, Organizing, and the Temporary Workers’ Rights committee. For more information, click HERE.
Educational Opportunities
At the Local level, we are offering a Basic Shop Steward class. The deadline to apply for that is quickly approaching (November 7th). For more information and to fill out our online application form, click HERE.
At the Regional level, the Prairie and Pacific regions are hosting a 5-day educational. The courses being offered are Turtle Island and Social Steward. For more information and to download the application forms, click HERE. Deadline to apply is November 20th.
RSMC Flyer Pay Clawback
As mentioned previously, the Corporation has made it known that they will be clawing back money from RSMCs for flyers they have already delivered. We are gathering information for this in order to file a grievance.
We are asking that you send the following information to RSMCFLY2025@outlook.com:
- Paystub 21
- Letter of explanation
- The depot you work at
- Route # or if you are on a long-term assignment
Message from VP4 (RSMCs)
I am Cristina Phillips, your elected 4th Vice-President (RSMCs). If you are an RSMC/PRE/OCRE and you have concerns or issues in your depot or workplace, or you would like more information, or resources, or you would like the VP4 to visit your depot, please feel free to reach out to me at rsmc730@gmail.com to discuss any of the above and how the VP4 can assist you.
Reminders
- Staying Connected: Sign up for the text service or email list HERE.
- Special Assessment: The Local’s Special Assessment is suspended for the fiscal year (July 2025-June 2026), but will return in July 2026. So you should see a decrease in dues payments by slightly less than $15/month.
- Disability Supports: To access the Disability Supports portal, which provides a list of programs and services in your community, click HERE.
- Union Savings: To take part in these savings, you can register at unionsavings.ca/.
- Buy Union: Looking for a list of union-made goods and services? Click HERE.