One can't help but wonder if the CEOs of BC Ferries and Canada Post came from the same school of business.
In the past few weeks, both quasi-crown corporations have made major decisions with minimal consultation about their proposals. Neither the post office nor the ferry system seem to care about the impact their decisions to help pay the bills will have on the taxpayers. While both groups need some business-model restructuring, both seem to have gone the "fire sale" route, cutting as deep as they can.
Pretty much the only mandate of the Canadian postal service is to get the mail to the people of Canada. And yet, instead of corporate restructuring or getting rid of some of the administrative costs associated with the company, Canada Post, out of the blue, announces that they will no longer be bringing mail to your doorstep and will be cutting thousands of mail carriers jobs in the years ahead.
It's simple to say that people can now go to a central mailbox location to get their mail and the reality is most people can without too much of a problem. But Canada Post's plan fails to take into account the thousands of Canadians for who this will not be just a problem, but a major hindrance in their day-to-day life.
I'm talking about those who face mobility challenges, whether through the ravages of old age, some sort of accident or a life-long disability. On one had the government is doing what it can to encourage seniors to live in their homes as long as possible, something Northern Health said most seniors want to do, while on the other hand the government is making it much more difficult for them to do so.
Is Canada Post really going to ask senior citizens who may barely be able to move around the house, let alone drive, to make their way around town in order to pick up the mail?
That is as cruel as shutting down access to entire communities five days a week.
Oh wait, BC Ferries is in the midst of doing just that.