Canada Post announced a pre-tax loss Thursday of $548 million for the previous year.. Canada Post .Cabinet has not disclosed any specific plan for managing the post office's financial situation and making it profitable again, but it has asked Canadians for their opinion on reducing services..“The Government of Canada expects the corporation to operate in a manner that is financially self-sustaining,” the post office wrote in its latest Annual Report..“The corporation submitted to the Government of Canada a strategic plan that acknowledges the magnitude and significance of recurring financial losses over the past five years and reinforces the importance of transformation to serve Canadians.”.Canada Post submitted a new corporate plan to the cabinet in 2021, according to Blacklock’s Reporter..“Was the corporate plan accepted by the government? No,” management wrote in a submission last June 30 to the Commons Government Operations committee..Management blamed last year’s losses on inflation, a looming recession and a 20% decline in parcel volumes, its most lucrative service..“However, our parcel revenue is higher than before the pandemic,” said the Annual Report..“The return of in-store shopping, the rising cost of living and growing economic uncertainty contributed to lower demand for online shopping and lower parcel volumes compared to the elevated levels earlier in the pandemic,” wrote management..“In 2022, revenue and volumes of our parcels line of business declined compared to 2021.”.The latest pre-tax loss of $548 million follows losses in 2021 ($490 million), in 2020 ($779 million), in 2019 ($153 million) and 2018 ($276 million). .The post office earned pre-tax profits totalling $388 million from 2014 to 2017..Last year, the department of Public Works commissioned a series of public opinion surveys on cuts to postal services..“This research is intended to capture the views of Canadians about the mail and their current expectations of Canada Post, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and Canada Post’s ongoing financial losses,” said one report, Canadians’ Views on Canada Post Services..A majority of consumers said they supported a reduction in mail delivery from the current five business days per week. Canadians surveyed also said they’d be willing to pay higher stamp rates, from the current 92 cents for a domestic letter to $1.25 or more..A separate survey of small business owners, the largest users of the post office, concluded a majority supported an end-to-doorstep mail delivery..Asked “To what extent would you support or oppose an end to door-to-door home delivery and replacing it with community mailboxes?” 66% agreed..“When it comes to reducing Canada Post’s financial losses, more businesses than not believe Canada Post should be supported by the federal government to maintain their current service offering in addition to directly subsidizing the more costly and less profitable postal services in rural and remote communities,” wrote researchers.
