Picket lines went up across Canada this morning as workers at Canada Post launched an unlimited strike action.

For months, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) has been trying to secure a new collective agreement to protect jobs and pensions, achieve a reasonable wage increase, and address excessive workloads. Canada Post, however, has had other plans.

As a crown corporation — a public enterprise that operates like a private corporation but also serves a public mandate — Canada Post is claiming financial distress to justify cost-cutting measures. According to its spokespeople, the corporation is running at a loss and must impose deep concessions on its workforce.