The New Democratic Party is facing internal reflection after the federal cabinet imposed its fifth order in four months to end legal picketing under the Canada Labour Code, setting a postwar record. NDP MP Brian Masse (Windsor West, Ont.) acknowledged the party’s struggles with the issue, saying, “We are reflecting on what we did because we pushed those problems decades along by putting workers back to work without an agreement.”Blacklock's Reporter says Masse’s remarks followed a cabinet decision to halt a 28-day strike by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers through a section 107 order, which bars picketing until May 22, 2025, and mandates a labour inquiry. “Postal workers across Canada should know that I and New Democrats stand with them,” said Masse. “Undermining the bargaining process comes at their expense, the public’s expense, and the expense of a successful future for Canada Post.”Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon defended the intervention as a necessary measure to protect the public interest. “We’ve come up with what I think is an imaginative proposal to end the conflict in the near term and provide a path forward to both parties so they can come themselves to a negotiated agreement,” MacKinnon told reporters.MacKinnon cited disruptions caused by the strike, including delays in the delivery of 190,000 passports and 1.65 million tax notices. “Canadians must be assured their government will take all necessary action to protect them, especially when the safety and prosperity of workers and communities are at risk,” he said.However, the Union of Postal Workers called the order “an assault on our constitutionally protected right to collectively bargain and to strike.” NDP labour critic Matthew Green (Hamilton Centre, Ont.) criticized the federal government’s actions, saying, “That’s wrong. That’s a violation of workers’ rights, and it has to stop.”NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, who previously pledged to “fight tooth and nail” against federal intervention in the postal strike, was notably absent from the Commons on the day of the cabinet order and did not comment publicly. Earlier in the strike, Singh declared New Democrats were “in full solidarity” with the 55,000 picketers and denounced government interference. “Stay out of this,” Singh said on November 15. “Let the workers bargain their contract. It’s their right. Justin Trudeau has let workers down again and again.”The postal workers’ dispute marks the fifth such intervention since August 22, following government orders to end strikes or lockouts involving the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, Longshore Workers Local 514 in Vancouver, Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 375 in Montréal, and CUPE Local 2614 in Québec City.
