Canada Post workers head back to work tomorrow. Here's what we ...

With Canada Post workers ordered back to the job, mail will start getting sorted again on Tuesday.

Here's what we know about the order, and when you will start to see mail in your mailbox again.

On Friday, federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon announced he was asking the Canadian Industrial Relations Board to send 55,000 Canada Post workers back to work, ending the four-week strike.

After two days of hearings, the board issued a ruling, forcing members with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) back to work.

A retroactive pay increase of five per cent for employees was implemented, going back to the day after the last contract expired.

For the rural and suburban mail carriers, the contract expired Dec. 31, 2023. For the urban carriers, it expired on Jan. 31, 2024.

Employees will receive an upfront payment before Christmas of $1,000, and $500 for temporary employees, based on a minimum number of hours.

The rest of the retroactive pay owed will be continued until it's caught up by the end of January.

The Canada Post strike began on Friday, Nov. 15, and mail delivery service has been impacted since.

Postal operations will remain closed today (Dec. 16).

Operations will begin at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, so it's likely there could be mail out for delivery then, or by Wednesday. 

“We look forward to welcoming our employees back to work and serving the millions of Canadians and businesses who rely on our services,” Canada Post said in a statement. 

They said the terms of the existing collective agreements would be extended until May 22, 2025.

Special mediator William Kaplan has been appointed to assist with negotiations of a new collective agreement between Canada Post and the union. A report is expected by May 15, 2025.

“Our commitment has always been to reach negotiated agreements with CUPW that would help us better serve the changing needs of Canadians, and provide good jobs to those who provide the service,” Canada Post said. “We remain committed to doing so within this new process while also meeting the postal needs of Canadians.”

The union said it denounced the “assault on our constitutionally protected right to free and fair collective bargain and our right to strike.

“We are going to continue to fight hard to get good negotiated collective agreements for our 55,000 members,” the union said on its website. “We will continue to fight for fair wages, safe working conditions and to retire with dignity. We have been pushing Canada Post for years to expand services to generate more revenue.”

— With files from Mike Pearson