As the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) strike enters its third week, impacting small businesses, residents, government and postal workers, one Whistlerite with a long list of pen pals is facing a different challenge than the average postal service user.
Christina Nick is an artist who first fell in love with letter-writing when she finished university. She travelled to different countries throughout her 20s and would send postcards to friends along the way.
“In the 1990s, that's how we communicated. It was an economical way to communicate, and it was also lots of fun," Nick said. "I love writing letters, and I love sending postcards to people, and it just continued."
What inked the practice into her life was meeting an older couple in France. All three were artists, and they started a working relationship. The trio would spend summers together making sculptures, and then Nick would return to Whistler, save up money, and make her way back to the Republic. But their working relationship continued in the space in between, as did Nick’s grasp of the French language.
“We would discuss through letter-writing our ideas on future projects. I would reply to their letter in French, but with lots of sketches. And this went on over the years," she said. "I eventually learned French a lot better through their help, but our letter-writing continued, and I believe it's why we had a very, very strong foundation in our friendship."
Now, this old mode of communication is a novel way to stay in touch. Each year, Nick uses her skills as an artist and creates Christmas cards, sending them to about 80 correspondents. She relies on Canada Post to get the letters where they need to go. This year, she won’t be sending Christmas cards.
But there was one person she needed to get a card to—a sick friend in California. Sending a piece of paper thousands of kilometres through Canada Post usually costs her about $3. But through United Parcel Service (UPS), it costs Nick $40.
“I have a newfound gratitude for Canada Post,” she said of the cost through UPS.
Ultimately, the strike is impacting her relationships and she hopes it ends by the New Year, so she can continue giving her gift of writing to loved ones.
“When I write a letter to someone, I'm in the process of constantly thinking about that one person, and I believe that that's really valuable," Nick said. "When is it that we just focus on one thing for, say, an hour? It's kind of rare to focus on thinking about one person, and that's what ends up happening. And it's a little bit of a gift... It's not just the fact that they receive a letter, it's that instinctively they know you were thinking about them for that whole entire time while you wrote that letter.”
Postal strike's local impact
Currently, more than 55,000 postal workers are on strike over contract negotiations with Canada Post. According to an update on CUPW’s website from Dec. 2, they are reviewing Canada Post’s “comprehensive framework” presented to the union Dec. 1, and are going back to the bargaining table once asked by mediators. In an update on Canada Post’s website, the Crown corporation said its proposal aims “to bring greater flexibility to the corporation’s delivery model, while also demonstrating movement on other key issues.”
Pique reached out to the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) and the Whistler Chamber to learn what advice and advocacy each is engaging in.
The RMOW said most of its services are available online through MyWhistler, and staff can field questions and concerns over phone or email. Reminders for municipal license renewals will go out online, and the RMOW said it will “adjust and provide some flexibility as needed” during the strike.
For outgoing cheques, the RMOW is engaging with suppliers for alternative payment options. Incoming payments to the RMOW are available online, and residents with financial needs can contact the municipality by emailing [email protected] or calling 604-932-5535.
For a full list of how to pay bills, fines and more, visit the municipality’s website.
In terms of advocacy for businesses, Louise Walker, executive director of the Whistler Chamber, said the national Canadian Chamber has written to federal ministers about the strike’s impact.
“It was highlighted that the strike is damaging to Canada's retail sector, especially rural communities and e-commerce small business," she wrote in an email. "The timing is terrible and impacts wider provincial and national supply chains, delaying deliveries and adding another increased expense to the escalating cost of doing business. On behalf of the Chamber network, the Canadian Chamber urged the ministers to immediately intervene and resolve the dispute."
