Cuts to postal service are not new to Canadians

The United States Postal Service has been getting a lot of attention the past week, ever since Postmaster General Louis DeJoy embarked on a plan to slash the scope of operations and supposedly suppress the expedient circulation of mail-in ballots in November’s election, especially ballots that could be cast against Donald Trump, who appointed DeJoy to the position.

In Canada, mail-in ballots are generally only used at the municipal level, depending on if the town or city has chosen to vote by that method. In the event that there is a provincial or federal election during the current pandemic, election agencies are still preparing to conduct the voting in-person using the good old-fashioned paper ballots marked with an “x” using a pencil as Canadians have done for decades. As with most U.S. jurisdictions using mail-in ballots, they do not have to be mailed to be counted. Voters can still return them to a safe drop box at city hall.

There has never been an example of postal chicanery to thwart voting in Canada. However, Canadians have had inferior postal service to their American neighbors for decades.

Like the U.S. Postal Service, Canada Post was once a full government department with a cabinet-level Postmaster General, who due to the Canadian parliamentary system, was also an elected Member of Parliament. The service was officially called Royal Mail Canada until the late 1960s when the more corporate branding of Canada Post began to appear. Twice-daily delivery and Saturday delivery also disappeared. In 1969, the Postal Savings Bank was discontinued. It allowed people to open bank accounts at their local post office. It was especially convenient for low-income Canadians or people in remote areas where there were no banks.

In 1981, Canada Post ceased to be a government department and became a crown corporation, which is basically a company that is owned by the government and operates with almost entire financial and administrative independence. It is like the concept that the Nixon administration had created with the U.S. Postal Service in 1971.

Due to the high amount of financial independence Canada Post has, there has been periodic pressure to maximize revenue and minimize losses. Stamps are expensive in Canada compared to the U.S. In Canada, a regular “Permanent” stamp, which is the equivalent of a U.S. “Forever” stamp, costs $1.07 individually or 92 cents if purchased in a packet of 10. Canadians pay $1.30 for a stamp to send a letter to the United States, and $2.71 to any other country. There are no special rates for postcards.

Since the 1980s, Canada Post has reduced home delivery in rural and urban areas. Units of boxes made of green steel began appearing, and then were followed by the brown, ironically branded “Superboxes.” More recent models are referred to as just “community mailboxes.” Fewer delivery routes meant lower costs. In 2015, Canada Post announced it was going to discontinue all remaining urban home delivery across the country. The plan was highly unpopular with the public and became an issue in that year’s election and likely aided Justin Trudeau in becoming Prime Minister. 

Cost cutting over the past nearly 40 years has also led to the closure of many post offices, while others have been relegated to privately operated counters under contract in general stores or drugstores. Post office closures have led to really incoherent levels of service across Canada. In Newcastle, Ontario, the post office was closed in 1990 when its postmaster retired. Everything was moved to a convenience store across the street, which made little sense in a rapidly growing community east of Toronto.

Meanwhile, many settlements with no other businesses or services have a post office owned and operated directly by Canada Post. Hours are also inconsistent between communities. Listowel, Ontario has an approximate population of 7,500 and its post office is closed on Saturday. However, in Grenville, Québec with a population of just 1,500, the post office is open on Saturday mornings.

The motives to allegedly use the U.S. Postal Service to suppress the democratic process are disturbing, but efforts to diminish the level and quality of postal service are not unheard of. It’s been happening in Canada for a long time.