Canada Post Strike?

Mail? The only mail moving right now is pension and social security checks. The back to work legislation is going to be tabled at 3:10 pm today, according to CP24 news

 

I'm not in Canada, however, I received an interesting email today in regard to USPS' stance on shipments to Canada:

And on the USPS website itself, it says:

So I guess there will be no shipping to Canada from the United States via USPS unless GXG services are used, at least until they start accepting shipments to Canada again.

 

I wouldn't assume that anything that has been shipped will automatically be sent back. If nobody's there to send it on, nobody's there to send it back either.

I don't want a privatized post office. I saw Japan's change over, and everything promptly got more confusing and fragmented, with a noticeable restriction on what could be shipped. Also, I don't like my expensive BJD-related parcels in the hands of couriers, where it's a different courier every week because they keep rotating through the courier companies just trying to get a job that might pay, someday, just slightly less poorly. I hate paying brokerage fees and I'd honestly rather have my private, personal stuff handled by people with a good stable wage who plan on being in that job for years to come.

ETA: They are at the table today, so things MIGHT get moving again this week: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2011/06/20/postal-legislation-monday.html

 

yes... I heard that on the news like 10 minutes after the mailman came. ^^;;

 

Oh phew! Thank you USPS. I'm relieved that at least US to Canada bound parcels aren't just being bounced back to their senders. My sympathies to those that had expensive packages from asia returned to sender. That shipping 'ain't cheap. Like others, I also hate dealing with courier services, especially those out of country; I don't appreciate being charged their surprised brokerage fees at the door.

I've got enough stress to deal with without having to worry about my parcels...

 

I can definitely confirm that USPS postal workers outright are telling people no to Canadian mail unless they are using the express guaranteed service because that is actually handled by Fedex. I was in my PO yesterday when a girl came in with a lot of boxes bound for Canada and they turned her away.

 

Ugh, thank you very much for the news, Kim.

Canada Post's online tracking seems to have stopped as well. Gaspar (my Mono) has now been on a six-day plane journey from Australia. I remember when I was like, a seven year old, I tried to write my first 'book' about a family who was stuck on a plane 'crossing the ocean' for that same amount of time. Of course, I didn't realize then that there was no way that could be a real life situation. Canada Post is stealing my (bad) novel ideas, fifteen years later!

Honestly, I'm just really nervous he'll be sent back to Australia, since I have no idea what customs' policies are regarding the flow of mail/parcels. I guess we can do nothing but wait, though. Cross my fingers?

 

I'm just laughing since the offer that was tabled by the Government was less than what Canada Post was offering the union. I just really hope that the NDP doesn't hold it up. I supported them, and if they side with the Union they will not be getting my vote next election.

Generally, I don't support big business, but in this case it looks like Canada Post has been the more reasonable one and more willing to negotiate.

 

It is true. I was just at the PO a few hours ago and I saw that they actually posted signs about not accepting mails to Canada except for Global Express Guaranteed® (GXG)* at each counter.

 

Their last offer wasn't that bad, either. What was it they wanted again -- to return to a previous agreement made between themselves and the union? Given the economy and the fact that business had been in decline for Canada Post and its workers beforehand, I don't think it was such an unfair deal, and as you pointed already, the government is offering a smaller carrot than company.

 

It's too bad, i hope they can solve this strike soon.
My package was shipped from faryland june 15 and I dont got any news.
The tracking said "en route to Canada". and nothing more.
I dont know if it returned to Korea.

 

Kazuki: if it has boarded the plane and arrived in Canada it is probably stuck in a sorting plant somewhere. I think there is only a possibility that it will be return to sender if it has not left Korea yet.

 

Kazuki; I was stuck in the same boat. Well, plane. Whatever. But the good news is, after my boy being AWOL for eleven days (I had the same message as you, which made me incredibly nervous), I got this update this morning:

Kind of bitter-sweet for me. Yay, doll's location revealed. Nay, he isn't going anywhere, even though he's likely less than a hundred miles from where I'm sitting right now. :P

But, at least he's IN the country, and if he's here, he's likely not to be shipped back to Australia. That probably goes for your doll, too; keep checking the website, even though I know it's a total bleak situation to wait through.

 

Looks like they still haven't agreed to anything:

negotiations-between-canada-post-and-cupw-break-off

 

Ugh.

At least this isn't as bad as when the garbage/compost workers had a strike all those years ago in Vancouver. What a stinky mess that was.

It's too bad, because the options on all sides are really limited. Somebody's got to cut back, but who will it be? Whoever it is, I hope we don't have to wait too long. I'm also concerned about 'the burden to taxpayers', as damage to the company's finances means more for us as taxpayers to cover once this thing finally -does- get settled.

 

Just wondering if anyone is familiar with alternate shipping options??
I'm in canada and trying to work out a doll trade with someone in the states.

I know from Canada I can ship via UPS and it's working just fine. My friends sent out two packages recently, one last week and it got to the buyer in 4 days. So on that end it's working.

Anyone know if UPS from USA into Canada is working fine? Or what other options are available? I'd rather rely on one of these methods right now.. even is CanadaPost goes back to work soon, I don't want items caught in the initial mail backup there's bound to be.

I was under the impression that the CP workers are being legislated back to work this weekend if things aren't settled by then.. just what I've been hearing on the radio anyway.

Any info on my questions would be greatly appreciated though

 

I am not sure about UPS, but US post offices are sending mail to Canada if it is GXG, global express guaranteed, because GXG is actually done through Federal Express which is still running.

 

All other courier services (DHL, Fedex, UPS) are still operating just fine. (In fact, better than "fine", considering the amount of business they've most likely gained recently). Just beware that if you get things shipped into Canada via UPS they're going to charge your a ridiculous and wallet-plundering "brokerage" fee. Last time I ever used UPS, they charged me $20 brokerage on a $27 item that had $4 tax. Never again, ew.

Also, that's it. I'm impatiently waiting for the back-to-work. I think when the company says "look bro, we're in deficit and we'll start having to accept government handouts just to stay afloat if we attempt to meet your demands", I think you back off and try to keep your job, not grind your employer into bankruptcy.

 

Aw man... I was hoping that things would start to get back to normal today. At least it seems like most people's packages are getting held onto? Gotta look for that silver lining...

Edit:

Lelite: Ugh, I know what you mean. Those brokerage charges are ridiculous. When I got hit every. single. time I went with one of those couriers, I started looking into why I was being charged. It's because, to get items over the border more quickly, they employ their own brokers in customs. Now, this on its own would be fine; if they included this charge in their shipping costs rather than mugging us at the door and blaming it on 'customs'.

/rawr

 

Not sure if it's still the case, but back when I used to work for UPS, UPS services delivered from USA to Canadian business addresses were not charged any brokerage fees. Only deliveries to home addresses incurred the fees. Someone in Canada might want to call UPS to confirm if this is still the case, but if so, it might be an option for some of you.

 

At this point brokerage fees don't bother me too bad. Any estimate on what they may be on say a $500 doll? I know it's hard to pin point, but an estimate is good enough for me.

 

When I used UPS to buy from Volks, I got charged over $160 in brokerage fees for a $300 purchase. So I would say just be prepared for any amount if you're using any of the courier services.

 

I had ordered a doll carrier bag from Volks, worth 50 dollars...UPS slammed me with a 44 dollar brokerage fee. UPS is just horrible when it comes to this fee and it's quite ridiculous. I basically paid an additional 100% on top of my purchase, I was quite livid.

Hopefully Canada Post comes to a settlement soon, because it is quite an inconvenience for all parties involved.

 

I went in to the post office today and they had a sign saying there was no service still.

 

One reason why I will not order a doll from Volks. I rather ger slammed with custom fees and any other small fees then a whopping brokerage + S&H fees. Not after I had to fork over $145 in brokerage fees for my PC tower a friend build for me in the US.

 

I recently shipped a doll from Canada to the US for a face-up via Purolator since Cp is still down. At the time I didn't think much of it and claimed her for the price it would cost to replace her. Now I'm totally freaking out about these brokerage fees that I had never heard of before. I've read lots of horror stories about shipping from the US to Canada, but nothing about the opposite way. Should I expect a crazy bill in the mail?

I had heard that doll's don't get charged customs when going to the US so I felt ok about insuring her to go down there, I should have known when they asked me if I wanted to be billed for any border charges. I'm glad I said yes since this is my possible screw up but this could end up being one expensive commission.

 

Volks now allows you to ship via USPS, so you can avoid the brokerage fees.

I don't think brokerage fees are based on the value of the package, they're more to do with the fact that the company has to fill out paperwork and such to move the package across the border. They aren't the same as duties and taxes in that way.

The back-to-work legislation passed in the House and they plan to fast-track it through the Senate, so the mail will start to move again soon.

 

When I ordered my Gretel she went through USPS and had 90$ in custom fees, I'm just so happy that Volks received them early. ;3;

Also I'm so glad that the NDP stunt is over and it's gone through, I think this has been the ONLY time I've ever actually supported a Harper decision! Hopefully by Monday things will be working again.

 

So how's the post office situation in Canada now? I need to ship a doll there next month, and a doll should be shipped out to me, too, next month. ;A; Purolator is quite expensive, isn't it?

 

Still at an impasse, unfortunately. I'm hoping for more updates come Monday.

 

I was actually thinking of having a seller wait until Canada Post is back up to mail my girl. Then I realized that it will likely take Canada Post quite a while to get packages moved out of the warehouses and caught up to everything that's been backing up for a while now. I've been stuck a week in customs with a doll that arrived in Canada the day before a ONE day holiday. Now times that by about 10 since that's about how many business days they've been off. Since I would need the girl to arrive before the end of this summer, I'm going to take the risk and use UPS.

Apparently there is a way to avoid fees through it but you have to basically do the brokering yourself. I found a few articles about the process, called self-clearing, online. So if anyone is desperate, that might be an option.

 

Yeah, you'll either have to get the seller to hold your doll (even though the system will be backed up, it's true, when it returns to work) or go through another carrier. My post office is hardcore striking -- so hardcore about it, in fact, that they've taken off their doorknob. You can't even get in, let alone take a package inside.

 

Bwahahaha, you're kidding about the doorknob, are you? XD That's cute. LOL.

I am thinking of other ways... Like DHL and FedEx. But how much would they cost to ship a doll head (SD sized) to Asia? Anyone can help? I tried using the calculator in FedEx and it comes back as $136. That is an immensely expensive shipping fee for a head!

 

I'm not kidding, actually! It's a bar shaped doorknob -- all that's left is the holes where the bar would go! I didn't even notice it until I tried to yank the door open!

Hhhmm, unfortunately, I can't help you too much on the other services. I stopped working with them when they broke all my stuff. :P

 

They broke your stuffs??? D:

 

fransyung, the lockout is actually over, because legislation was passed yesterday that forces the postal workers to go back to work. It just has to go through the Senate, which plans to get it through very quickly, although it's unclear the exact date the postal service will start up again. While the postal service will take a while to get rid of its backlog, if it's later next month that you have to ship stuff you may still be able to avoid using couriers.

Whether or not that was a stunt by the NDP is a moot point for this purpose of this thread. I've been guilty of getting political in here, too, but we all need to stop because DoA's not the place for that discussion. I suggest we keep this thread to just information about the status of Canada Post for BJD-related shipping purposes.

 

Hmmm honestly, if the calculator comes to that amount and you've filled out all the information accurately, it should come to that total, plus tax. Its so expensive because it is a private express courier service. :S hopefully the bill will fly through the senate and things will go back to operation soon.

 

fransyung: Indeed. My company mostly dealt with DHL, but I remember one time, I was in charge of sending this box of porcelain Precious Moments Figurines across the city to another store. I wrapped each item carefully and in its own box. Nonetheless, when the shipment actually got there, only three figures were left unharmed. :S

It could be different with other companies, or it could have changed since then, but like we've been discussing earlier in this thread, DHL is meant more for freight, or at least, I suppose that's what they're used to.

 

The legislation passed in the Senate. Mail service resumes Tuesday.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2011/06/26/canada-post.html

 

Oh thank goodness
(now time to resume dolly spending)

 

Thanks for the update, timid!!! Yay!!! XD

 

According to the talks I heard over the weekend from a coworker of mine the strike is going to be ending tomorrow (monday) as the workers are going to be forced by the government to return to work because they are effecting the economy, which is illegal.
I am personally waiting to order from LUTS and saw a notice about them not sending packages EMS. It is very frustrating. I hope tomorrow will bring good news ... and hopefully some mail!

 

Hi there, welcome to DoA! ^^ I didn't know that Luts has stopped shipping to Canada. >.> Hmm... Are the other companies doing the same thing?

 

I ordered something from LUTS, and they let me know that they would be shipping as soon as the strike is over, so I don't think you should worry! Hopefully the mail will be back up and running by today or tomorrow... And to kind of answer your question, fransyung, Crobidoll also did the same thing. My packages happened to ship right after the lockout started, so both companies (conveniently) sent emails letting me know what was going to happen.

I'm not sure of any companies other than that though...

 

Iple stopped shipping to Canada due to the strike and Greece (forgot the reason) I'm happy postal is resuming on Tuesday. Having a parcel stuck in the processing facility for 2 weeks is not fun.

 

I am actually woried because my parcel was shipped before the lockout and was stuck in vancouver since the 14. I saw an attempter(?) delivery on the 22 I just hope they did not send my parcel back x.x and if they did, that alice collection will not make me pay shipping x.x


good news is that I got my parcel. Canada Post rang my doorbell 3 times during the day. =D

 

Hey I ordered some wigs from Leekeworld and they said EMS might take 3 Months?

"We asked the post office again.

They said you couldn't use the Premiun EMS.

But it will takes about three months.

So if you are ok, we can send it."


Is this really what the situation is right now? I ordered some Unoa Headbacks from the States just before the strike began and I got them delivered right after the lock out was over.

Any help would be appriciated, I dont want to cancel my order >_>

 

My boy also got caught in the postal fiasco. But he's home, now! So to everyone waiting, it's true: the mail is starting to move again, and hopefully you'll all get your things, soon, too!

 

Just to check no one has had anything sent back have they? I have a head coming from Iplehouse, she got caught at Toronto airport during the strike. The last time I checked the tracking it said they would try and deliver the next buisness day, unfortunatly my computer crashed after that and I lost the tracking number, so now I have no idea where it is.
I hope it's on it's way to me, I'm just getting a little worried.

 

If the head was caught at the airport during the strike (like mine was), it most likely won't get sent back, but it's probably been backed up in customs. I'm crossing my fingers that yours works out, though. But to confirm, I haven't heard anything about any package being returned to sender, yet.

Luck!

 

Thanks, I'm hoping that's the case.
*fingers crossed*

 

I've ordered lots of things from Leeke World, and recently had Mikhaila stuck in Edmonton during the postal strike and it only took about a week to get to me. I have no idea what they mean by that. 3 Months sounds crazy, maybe you should get clarification?

 

karleecakes; I didn't know you were a Canadian! And an Albertan at that! You learn something new every day! I used to live in Calgary myself.

Duofan; I've never dealt with Leekeworld, but maybe they are under the impression that they cannot use that form of shipping, and mean alternatives can take up to three months to ship? I'd definitely get clarification!

 

Well their english isn't the best I think they meant: We inquired at the Post office about sending by EMS, and the Korean Post office told them, there might be a delay of up to 3 months.

I just wanted to see if Any Canadians ordered some wigs from their Discount Sale on July 1st >_>

 

Hm. Well, your items aren't getting any closer to you by not being shipped at all, so I would chance it and just hope they're wrong. It's hard to tell, though. If you're really uncomfortable about waiting that long, I would also inquire about alternative shipping options, to see if there are faster methods.

 

I think Leeke probably means that they can't ship through EMS, but can try another method that will take three months. International Post Offices have stopped accepting EMS deliveries to Canada a little while back, and so far no doll companies have made announcements that they're resuming shipping to Canada, so it's possible that international post-offices haven't started accepting EMS yet because they couldn't guarantee the delivery. My Crobi order is still hanging out at "confirmed payment receipt" from last week.

Because otherwise... Three months?! That's absolutely unacceptable. I'm pretty sure that EMS/Xpresspost shipping from Canada comes with a 4-business-day (not including customs processing time) guarantee, not sure about the incoming EMS parcels. I don't care what CP ends up doing - pulling in serious over-time, hiring new part-time workers, but they better clean this up quick-like.

 

Not quite, Luts has noticed the strike is over.

http://eluts.com/board/view.php?board_name=DREAMBOARD4&ID=313

.hlp

 

Uh..To all those who had EMS packages delivered to canada during the strike :S How has it turned out for you? I've already waited a week to see if the status of my order had changed, but track-trace says a failed attempted delivery at a postal code which is not mine, and the CP website says only that my package hit the strike and was delayed. As far as I know, it's not even in the customs system yet...

This has been nothing but a headache for me. Is there anything I can do to find out more about my package???

 

my parcel was shipped before the lockout and was in vancouver from the 14th till then end of the strike. I received my parcel last wednesday. I guess it might take a while for the post to be back to normal.

 

Well I paid EMS and I didn't tell them but they shipped my items! Grrr