Question Period Note: Canada Post Corporation – Parcel volumes in Iqaluit

The COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent rise in e-commerce has increased parcel volumes beyond anticipated levels, underscoring capacity issues in Iqaluit.

• Canada Post is proud to serve the people of Iqaluit and thanks the community for their continued patience and support
  • Canada Post has implemented important physical distancing measures due to the COVID-19 pandemic that assure everyone's safety, however these measures also result in longer wait-times
  • The Iqaluit post office and parcel annex have extended their parcel pick-up hours and are reminding customers to pick up parcels as soon as they arrive
  • In addition to extended hours, Canada Post is exploring ways to reconfigure the Iqaluit Post Office and parcel annex, hire more staff and review overall logistics to meet the unprecedented demand and the city’s high rate of growth

If pressed on solutions:

• Canada Post is developing short and long-term solutions to manage the increased volumes and create a better experience for their customers and employees
• While the Iqaluit Post Office has always been one of the busiest post offices in Canada, the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent rise in e-commerce has increased parcel volumes beyond anything Canada Post could have anticipated, and this has underscored capacity issues in Iqaluit
• Because everything is flown in, Canada Post is looking at how it can pre-sort parcels so that they do not have to be sorted when they arrive in Iqaluit
• Canada Post brought together a special team from different departments specifically dedicated to coming up with solutions for Iqaluit
• It has begun changes to its postal operations, staffing, and overall logistics to find a solution to systematically change how mail is delivered in Iqaluit

While the Iqaluit Post Office has always been one of the busiest post offices in Canada, the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent rise in e-commerce has increased parcel volumes beyond anything that could have been anticipated, and this has underscored capacity issues in Iqaluit.

Additionally, physical distancing measures that assure everyone's safety result in fewer transactions at a time and have produced longer wait times. This is a challenging situation for staff and customers alike, and employees must prioritize clearing mail and parcels in each transaction.

Even before the current situation, Canada Post was and is exploring ways to reconfigure post offices, hire more staff and review overall logistics to meet the demand and Iqaluit's high rate of growth. For instance, in 2016, the main Iqaluit post office was renovated with more than 50 additional parcel lockers, and a second parcel pickup location was added to keep up with demand.

In July, Canada Post employees processed 78% more parcels than in July 2019, and in August, 52% more parcels than August 2019. While these are significant increases, necessary COVID-19 related health and safety measures also make it more challenging.

To process the increase in volumes, Canada Post will regularly extend customer parcel pick-up hours on weekdays and weekends at both facilities and remind customers to pick up their parcels as soon as the parcels arrive.

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