on

December 23, 1988 News 985-2131 Classified 986-6222 Distribution 986-1337 64 pages 25¢

the space to store them.

The result, according to CUPW,
wili be parcel delivery delays of
anywhere from three to six days
because cards notifying customers
to pick up their packages at the
sub-station will not be dropped at
a residence until the parcels are ac-
tually at the appropriate station.

But Canada Post Corp.
spokesman Janet Austin denied
that thece will be any delivery
delay.

Any backlog, she said, reflects
the annual increase in parcels
hardled during the Christmas
tush.

It’s Christmas and we do have
a large volume of mail to deal
with,’’ she said. ‘“‘But it’s not
creating a probiem. There will be
no delays in delivering the
parcels.’’

She said the daily parcel volume
handled by the post office jumps
approximately 24 times during the
Christmas season -— in the Greater
Vancouver area this year from
about 9,000 to 25,000.

The postal station, at Ander-
son’s Pharmacy in the !500-block
of Lonsdale, has a capacity for
approximately 300 parcels and
serves the entire Lonsdale area.

Pharmacy manager Gilbert Lee
said Wednesday the postal station
was full from the Christmas rush,
““‘but we are not overloaded. We
are working in conjunction with
the post office to clear the
backlog."’

Canada Post initially attempts to
deliver packages to homes, but
returns them to the main post of-
fice if residents are not at home to
receive the parcel.

Cards are then made up notify-
ing residents that they can pick up
the parcel at the nearest postal sta-
tion or sub-station. The cards are
dropped at the residence the nexi

Sa wavy. backgi a fe a thes geese ‘feed 2 int
‘North Vaine uver’s ” Wateriront Park:. ‘With Ciristmas “only. ‘two. days away, these:

‘deliveries
delayed

CANADIAN UNION of Postal Workers (CUPW) Van-
couver local president Marion Pollack said Tuesday ap-
proximately 150 Christmas parcels destined for North Shore
homes are being held at the main North Vancouver post of-
fice because a privateiy-run retail post office does not have

By TIMOTHY RENSHAW
| News Reporter
day, but only if the parcel is at the
appropriate sub-station.

Austin said if a sub-station ap-
pears to be overloaded with mail, a
second attempt to drop the parcel
is made, usually the same evening.

But Pollack said the problem of

There will be no
delays in delivering
the parcels.’’

—Canada Post
Corp. spokesman,
Janet Austin.

Christmas parcel backlogs at main
post offices resulting from insuffi-
cient capacity at retail sub-stations
is not confined to North Van-
couver.

“It’s a big problem,’’ she said.

CUPW set up picket lines this
summer around a new postal sta-
tion located at the Lynn Valley 7-
Eleven outlet as part of the union’s
national campaign against the in-
stallation of postal stations in
private business outlets.

But Austin said Canada Post has
had one of its best parcel delivery
success rates during the 1988
Christmas rush and credits that
success to the use of retail stations
and night and weekend parce!
delivery.

Canada Post's overall plan is to
expand its current 13,500 retait
outlets 10 18,C00 over the next few
years.