Don’t Let the Strike Disrupt Your Business — Alternative Shipping Strategies

📢Introduction

As of September 25, 2025, postal workers represented by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) have launched a nationwide strike affecting Canada Post services. This action comes in response to drastic reform measures announced by the federal government and Canada Post, including changes to delivery standards, a push toward community mailboxes, and restructuring aimed at reducing costs.

For businesses and individuals relying on Canada Post for deliveries, the strike introduces major uncertainty and disruption. In this post, we’ll explain what’s currently happening, how it could impact your shipments, and — importantly — how TotalShip Worldwide can help you navigate this period smoothly.

🚫What’s Happening Right Now🚫

Operations Halted & Delays Expected

• Canada Post has confirmed that mail and parcels will not be processed or delivered for the duration of the strike.

• Some post offices are closed and scheduled pickups have been canceled.

• Service guarantees are suspended on items already in the postal network.

• Even after the strike ends, it may take additional days or longer for operations to return to normal.

  
  

  Why the Strike Is Happening

  • The federal government has embraced recommendations to allow Canada Post more “flexibility” in delivery standards: converting millions of door-to-door addresses to community mailboxes, easing requirements for daily delivery, and closing or consolidating rural post offices.

  • CUPW argues these measures undermine universal service, threaten jobs, degrade delivery reliability, and represent a fundamental challenge to the public postal service.

  • The reform push is also motivated by Canada Post’s financial struggles; the government contends repeated bailouts are unsustainable, and a transformation is needed for long-term viability.

    
    

  The Broader Impact

  • Many businesses, especially e-commerce operations and small/medium enterprises, may see shipment delays, backlogs, and dissatisfied customers.

  • Some shippers are already diverting volume to alternative carriers as Canada Post becomes less reliable.

  • Canada Post’s market share is under pressure: private delivery firms like UPS, FedEx, and local couriers are expected to gain ground amid disruption.

  • For destinations in rural or remote areas, or for PO boxes, alternatives may be limited and more expensive.

    
    

⚠️What Businesses Should Do Right Now⚠️

This strike is a stress test for logistics resilience. Here are key actions your business should take immediately:

1. Audit your current Canada Post volume

   Identify all shipments currently routed via Canada Post — including small parcels, letters, or fulfillment services — and quantify risk if delays occur.

   
   

2. Prioritize urgent and time-sensitive orders

   For products with promotions, seasonal demand, or tight deadlines, shift them to carriers with higher reliability (even at higher cost).

   
   

3. Expand your carrier mix

   Don’t rely solely on Canada Post. Test or scale up other carriers (couriers, regional logistics providers) now before the backlog builds.

   
   

4. Communicate proactively with customers

   Let your customers know ahead of time about potential delays. Set realistic expectations. Offer express options if feasible.

   
   

5. Review your terms & policies

   Temporarily adjust shipping guarantees, refund thresholds, or discount options to manage liability and customer satisfaction.

   
   

6. Adapt your pricing or shipping model

   You may need to absorb higher costs or pass on part of them to customers — at least temporarily — to preserve margins.

🚀How TotalShip Worldwide Can Help (Solutions)

At TotalShip Worldwide, we’re ready to support you during this period of postal uncertainty. Below are solutions we can offer to help your business maintain momentum:

• Multi-carrier integration & fallback routing

  We can configure your shipping workflows so that if Canada Post is unavailable, your orders automatically redirect to alternative carriers such as DHL, UPS, FedEx, Purolator, regional couriers, or LTL networks.

  
  

• Rate negotiation and volume leverage

  Because we aggregate volume across clients, we can often secure better rates with alternate carriers than smaller businesses can individually. Let us help you optimize cost-to-service tradeoffs.

  
  

• Dedicated logistics consultation

  Our team can review your SKU profiles, delivery zones, and risk tolerance to help you decide which orders to “insure” with faster options, and which can accept slower alternatives.

  
  

• Warehouse & fulfillment flexibility

  If your operations are local or regional, we can explore strategies to utilize closer fulfillment centers or cross-docking to minimize reliance on long-haul postal legs.

  
  

• Transparent tracking and customer communication tools

  We can offer more robust tracking visibility and proactive alerting to your customers so delays or exceptions are visible early.

  
  

• Contingency planning & scenario modeling

  We can help you build “strike-resilient” logistics plans: which SKUs to prioritize, fallback capacity, buffer inventory, and cost thresholds to switch carriers.

  
  

• Partial subsidization or shipping-cost sharing

  For select clients or promotional windows, we may assist in absorbing part of the extra shipping cost to maintain your margins or preserve customer loyalty.

  
  

• Ongoing monitoring & adaptation

  We will continuously monitor strike progress, carrier capacity shifts, and rate changes to help you dynamically adjust your logistics strategy.

✅Closing Thoughts✅

Strikes like this are painful—but they also reveal strengths and vulnerabilities in your supply chain. The businesses that adapt quickly—diversify carriers, communicate clearly, and maintain flexibility—are those best positioned to weather the storm.

TotalShip Worldwide is committed to being your partner through these uncertainties. If you’d like help mapping out an alternative shipping strategy, analyzing cost tradeoffs, or implementing fallback routing, reach out — we’re ready to support you.