Canada Post segment reports Q2 profit; Parcel revenue grows more than 11 per cent
The Canada Post segment reported a profit before tax of $53 million for the second quarter of 2014, primarily due to the impact of lower employee benefit costs, continued growth in the Parcels business and new pricing measures for Transaction Mail contained in the Corporation’s Five-point Action Plan.
Canada Post is encouraged by the result, but Transaction Mail volumes continued their historic decline, falling by 38 million pieces, or 2.3 per cent in the second quarter and by 117 million pieces or 4.7 per cent in the first two quarters of 2014, compared to the same periods in 2013.
Canada Post is focused on executing the various elements of the Five-point Action Plan and has made considerable progress so far this year.
Meanwhile, online shopping continues to drive growth. Parcel revenues for the Canada Post segment rose by 11.3 per cent to $353 million in the second quarter of 2014, compared to the same period in the prior year.
Read the news release for more information.
2014/08/27
The Canada Post E-commerce Innovation Awards
Now in their third year, these Awards recognize companies that are driving the e-commerce industry in Canada. Past events have drawn retail giants such as Indigo and Future Shop. Our winners have included established retailers such as Mountain Equipment Co-op and Lowes.ca, as well as emerging trendsetters. See these highlights from the 2013 Awards to get a sense of how Canada Post is a leader in the e-commerce sector.
2014/06/06
Canada Post releases Q1 results
Canada Post has released its 2014 first-quarter results, which report a loss before tax of $27 million for the Canada Post segment.
Transaction Mail volumes continued to decline, falling 6.9 per cent, while Domestic Parcel volumes for the Canada Post segment rose by 4.9 per cent, lifted by growth in online shopping.
Together, the decline in bills and statements being mailed and the growth driven by online shopping reflect Canadians’ continuing shift in the use of postal services, and the Corporation’s key role in enabling the success of the fast-growing online retail sector.
In the first quarter of 2014, parcel revenue for the Canada Post segment increased by $23 million, or 7.1 per cent. Domestic Parcels, the largest product category, continued to show positive results as revenue increased by $14 million and volumes grew by more than 1.2 million pieces, or 4.9 per cent, compared to the same period the prior year.
Transaction Mail revenue however decreased by $50 million, or 6 per cent, in the first quarter as volumes fell by 79 million pieces, or 6.9 per cent.
Read the news release for more information.
2014/05/22
2013 Financial Results
Canada Post’s 2013 Annual Report and financial results are now public.
The results confirm our serious challenges, but also reflect solid growth in our Parcels business and our achievements in service performance and safety. With the Five-point Action Plan, we also ended the year by announcing the bold changes that will address our biggest challenges and help to secure a bright future for Canada Post.
Financial loss
As early as the spring of 2013, Canada Post communicated to all employees that it expected to lose money in 2013, and that it did not expect to pay out a Corporate Team Incentive for the year.
Indeed, the Canada Post segment had an operating loss of $269 million for 2013. The loss was reduced to $125 million before tax, mostly because of revenue from selling the plant in downtown Vancouver.
The Group of Companies reported an operating loss of $193 million, and after gains that were mostly from the sale of real estate, had a loss before tax of $58 million.
Key results for 2013 compared to 2012
Transaction Mail: volumes fell by 5.3 per cent, and are down 30 per cent per address since the decline began in 2007. Our plan to convert roughly 5 million addresses to community mailboxes will reduce our costs by up to $500 million a year upon full implementation, and is a key response to the twin challenges of volume decline and high fixed costs.
Parcels: Revenue from our top e-commerce customers grew 29 per cent. Revenue from Domestic Parcels increased 7.5 per cent and volumes increased 6.9 per cent. In the fourth quarter, parcel revenues grew by 9 per cent. As our marketing campaign said, Canada Post is “Delivering the Online World.”
Direct Marketing: This business faces a lot of competition in the age of Google, and volumes in 2013 were down by 1.5 per cent compared to 2012.
We still expect our direct mail business to grow, and we’re doing a lot of work throughout the company to promote it and to improve service.
Digital: More than 862,000 Canadians signed up for epost. There’s significantly higher use of the website for customer service inquiries and for the Mail Forwarding service.
Service and safety: Our employees in Operations achieved solid service performance in 2013, achieving our targets for Domestic Lettermail, Xpresspost and Expedited Parcel and for Addressed Admail. Delivery scanning performance was 99 per cent or above for seven months in a row for Domestic Parcels. Lost-time injury frequency was reduced by 19 per cent.
See the news release and Annual Report for full details.
You will receive more information throughout the year about how we are growing our business.
2014/05/05
CMBs: Employee FAQs
On February 20, 2014, Canada Post announced the 11 communities across Canada where mail will be delivered to new community mailboxes beginning in the fall of 2014. This is the first stage of a five-year initiative to convert roughly 5 million addresses from delivery to the door, which will help secure the future of the postal service.
Go here to join or follow the conversation Canadians are having about the changes to the postal service, and read Canada Post’s responses to their questions.
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[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”What’s happening?” onload=”open” text=”Canada Post announced it is converting delivery in 11 communities across Canada from door-to-door to community mailboxes in the fall of 2014. There will be NO change for:
• people in apartment buildings, seniors’ buildings and condominiums who get mail in the lobby.
• businesses on main streets or in “business corridors,” or which receive a large volume of mail or parcels.
• residents with a rural mailbox.
The operational structure needed to deliver to CMBs already exists: most or all of the routes in these communities are already motorized and they are in areas that already have a lot of CMBs nearby.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”What changes will delivery employees see when this occurs?” onload=”closed” text=”Converting door-to-door points of call to CMBs will mean carrying less weight, less walking and fewer stairs to climb.
It won’t completely eliminate the need to go to a customer’s door. Canada Post will still attempt delivery at the door of parcels too large to fit in the community mailbox’s parcel compartments and of parcels or registered items that require a signature.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”What does this mean for employees with job security?” onload=”closed” text=”No one’s job will be changing today, next week or next month. We have a lot of planning to do and we will be following the normal route restructuring process, including a volume count.
Canada Post will respect the collective agreements. No regular full-time or part-time employees will lose their job because of this change.
Nearly 15,000 employees will retire or leave over the next five years – more than enough to reduce by up to 8,000 positions through attrition.
“]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”What does this mean for customers?” onload=”closed” text=”We will mail all affected residents an info package with a short survey. They can also join an in-depth conversation online. Both will help us choose locations and the appearance of CMBs.
We understand that some seniors and Canadians with disabilities may not be able to get to their CMB. We’re seeking input about their needs and will offer new solutions.
The easiest and best way for affected customers to get consistently correct answers is through the package being mailed to them or through the website.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”How are these changes geared to help Canada Post secure its future?” onload=”closed” text=”In 2013 Canadians mailed more than one billion fewer pieces of mail than they did in 2006. The changes we are making are necessary if we are to secure the future of postal service in Canada. Canadians have told us they don’t want Canada Post to become a burden on taxpayers.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”Why are we not considering alternate-day delivery?” onload=”closed” text=”Parcels, advertising mail and high-value mail generate crucial revenue for CPC. In these competitive businesses, mailers and receivers expect daily delivery.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”Why are we not considering banking?” onload=”closed” text=”Canada Post has carefully studied banking – but it is a highly competitive and crowded sector and we have little experience in it. Postal banking would be too great a gamble. Our best opportunity for revenue growth builds on what we are already good at: delivering to Canadians. Parcels and Direct Mail are the best options to secure our future.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”How will we handle personal contact items (PCIs)?” onload=”closed” text=”Canada Post will still attempt delivery at the door of parcels too large to fit in the community mailbox’s parcel compartments and of parcels or registered items that require a signature.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”Are CMBs the answer to the growing parcel business?” onload=”closed” text=”Delivering parcels is Canada Post’s biggest growth opportunity – and by being secure and convenient, CMBs are well-suited for this high-growth part of our business.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”Will apartments with a ‘walk through’ / door to door delivery be converted to CMBs or will they be required to set up a mail room in their lobbies?” onload=”closed” text=”‘Walk through’ apartment buildings where we currently delivery door-to-door will be converted to centralized delivery. Each will be managed on a case-by-case basis, and the centralized delivery solution will largely depend on the size of the building and the wishes of the building manager. If it is not possible or preferable to install a lockbox in the building lobby, we will try to set boxes up outside on the building grounds (for larger buildings). Smaller ‘walk through’ apartment buildings will likely be converted to CMBs.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”Why do CPC employees have to learn of these changes through the media? Would it not be good customer relations for us to be able to answer questions from the public rather than look surprised?” onload=”closed” text=”Canada Post has employees working 24 hours a day, across 5 time zones. Our goal with this announcement was to make sure that every letter carrier heard the news from their team leader before heading out on their route for the day. To be able to do that for Newfoundland, we scheduled an early announcement. That meant that employees in other time zones may have heard it on the news, but would have been able to speak with their team leader about it once they arrived at work.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”Will the transition to cmb’s be made from large urban areas, such as right now, to smaller urban areas? eg. smaller cities – pop. 50 000 to 10 000″ onload=”closed” text=”• The neighbourhoods that have been chosen to be converted in 2014 are close to neighbourhoods that already have mail delivered to community mailboxes.
• The operational structure needed to deliver to community mailboxes already exists in these communities, which makes them most suitable for efficient early conversion.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”What will happen with the surplus of letter carriers?” onload=”closed” text=”• Canada Post will require fewer employees to serve the future needs of Canadians.
• Canada Post expects nearly 15,000 employees to retire or otherwise leave the company over the next five years.
• This is more than enough to allow for the reduction of between 6,000 and 8,000 positions, mainly through attrition.
• We will respect our collective agreements and no regular full-time or part-time employees will lose their job as a result of this change.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”How will this impact temporary employees? RLCs?” onload=”closed” text=”For CUPW-represented employees, the Employment Security (Article 53) provision of the Collective Agreement does not apply to temporary/casual employees. The process for staffing vacancies is outlined in the Collective Agreement and this is not changing. As for relief letter carriers, it is possible that some employees may be required to move from their current work location based on seniority. The terms of the Collective Agreement will be followed.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”CMBs OK! But I have one very important question. What about protection? For the mail and for the employee. With all kinds of weather elements throughout the year we need a clear roof to cover over us!” onload=”closed” text=”Delivery agents are provided with protective gear to shield them from the elements while they’re out on their route. The CMBs — both the new and existing models — are designed to keep contents safe and dry.”]
[simnor_toggle accordion=”1″ icon=”” heading=”Where can I get more information?” onload=”closed” text=”Employees should visit the canadapost.ca website or Intrapost for more information about this conversion. Questions and Answers have already been posted and we will add more information throughout the process.”]
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2014/02/20