Albertans forced to wait in line for hours after Edmonton passport office closed

The month-long Canada Post strike and a flood in the federal building in downtown Edmonton last week has created major hurdles for people waiting on passports.

Postal workers hit the picket line on Nov. 15, holding some essential mail, like passports, in limbo. Then Canada Place on Jasper Avenue, which has a passport office, was temporarily closed due to flooding earlier this month.

Edmontonians, like Amanda Buskas, were redirected to Londonderry Mall — where they waited hours to be seen. Some were turned away and had to return another day.

"I better go to the washroom first because this is going to be a long day," Buskas recalled thinking when she saw the lineups.

On Friday, federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon sent the labour dispute to the Canada Industrial Relations Board, an independent tribunal whose job is to resolve workplace disputes. As of 3 p.m. MT Saturday, no agreement has been reached between Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Works.

If the board finds negotiations between the two parties have reached an impasse, it has been directed to order striking union members back on the job until May 22, 2025, MacKinnon said Friday.

The strike has affected multiple federal agencies, including Service Canada, which runs the country's passport program. According to the federal government's website, Canadians who applied for a passport and chose to receive it through the mail will have to wait until mail service resumes.

If someone submitted an application, but they urgently need a passport, the website suggests they call a 1-800 phone number, or visit a Service Canada centre to request that their passport be transferred to a Service Canada location that offers pick-up service.

The centre in Canada Place is open, but its passport office has remained closed since the flood on Dec. 5, according to a Service Canada spokesperson. The centre's website says "limited passport services" were moved to the Service Canada centre in Londonderry Mall in the meantime.

Buskas applied for a new passport for her son in September, but she learned it had gotten lost in the system when the Canada Post strike started, she said.

"It was stuck," she said.

The family had scheduled a flight for this week and needed the document pronto. On Monday, Buskas called the Service Canada centre in Canada Place and was told there were no interruptions, she said, but when she arrived, they sent her to the mall.

At the centre there, two lineups — one for people dealing with Canada Post and another for lost passports — stretched the length of the hallway, Buskas said. She was No. 28 in line and waited eight hours before being told to come back the next day.

On Tuesday, she waited six more hours in line, she said.