Canada Post seeks fresh taxpayer bailout after record $541M quarterly loss
Canada Post is ringing the alarm for yet another taxpayer-funded bailout by early 2026, hot off the heels of a massive $541 million pre-tax loss in the third quarter—a record high.
Canada Post is ringing the alarm for yet another taxpayer-funded bailout by early 2026, hot off the heels of a massive $541 million pre-tax loss in the third quarter—a record high.
The Crown corporation began 2025 with a $1.03 billion federal loan, but its quarterly earnings report, released Friday, stated those funds will be exhausted by the end of December — more than a year ahead of schedule.
The third-quarter loss is a 72 per cent increase over the $315 million shortfall posted in the same period last year.
Parcel delivery, which had been Canada Post’s most profitable segment, saw revenue drop 40 per cent year-over-year to $450 million, with volume falling by 27 million items.
For the first time in recent years, parcel revenue dipped below mail delivery revenue, despite traditional letter volumes continuing their annual decline.
So far in 2025, Canada Post has posted $989 million in losses — nearly triple the $345 million loss from the same period last year. Total losses since 2018 now exceed $5.5 billion.
The prolonged bargaining standoff with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers has also added financial uncertainty, with rotating strikes continuing as the critical holiday delivery season approaches. The impasse has now dragged on for over two years.
At the company’s annual meeting Tuesday, CEO Doug Ettinger said the corporation expects up to 30,000 workers to depart over the next decade, largely due to retirement, as part of an effort to rein in operational costs.
In September, Public Services and Procurement Minister Joël Lightbound unveiled reforms aimed at helping Canada Post modernize.
These include easing delivery standards, allowing more use of community mailboxes and the potential closure of underused rural outlets.