With only a few days left before Canada Post workers may return to the picket lines, a crucial report highlights that Canada Post is effectively unable to meet its debts. The report suggests that it should be allowed to close more remote post offices, open additional community mailboxes, and use part-time staff for weekend parcel delivery services.

Simultaneously, business leaders nationwide urge the company to reach an agreement with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers to avoid a repeat of last year's 32-day strike. Both sides must reach an agreement by 12:01 a.m. on May 22, or face the possibility of a strike or shutdown.

Reported by The Toronto Star, senior mediator William Kaplan stated in a report submitted to the government on Thursday and released on Friday: "Canada Post is facing a survival crisis: it is effectively unable to meet its debts or is bankrupt. Without thoughtful, phased, yet immediate reforms, its financial situation will continue to deteriorate."

Kaplan has submitted an official report authored by the Industrial Inquiry Commission to the federal government, including Minister of Employment and Family Hajdu and Labour Secretary Zerucell. Both sides met with the government on Friday to discuss the report's contents.

In December of last year, Kaplan was appointed by then-Federal Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon to chair the committee. At the time, MacKinnon requested that the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) declare that labor negotiations had reached an impasse. The CIRB eventually ruled and on December 17, instructed workers to return to their positions, ending the month-long strike.

Kaplan's responsibilities encompass two aspects: planning the future structure and functions of Canada Post and proposing potential new labor agreements.