About 55,000 Canada Post workers went on strike for the second time in six years on Friday after their union said it had failed to reach a pay deal with the postal operator in the run-up to the holiday season.

Approximately 55,000 Canada Post workers commenced a nationwide strike after a year of unsuccessful negotiations.

OTTAWA—Canada’s unionized postal workers walked off the job, halting handling of almost all mail and parcels and threatening lengthy delivery delays heading into the busy holiday season. The strike by tens of thousands of Canadian Union of Postal Workers members began early Friday after a year of contentious bargaining failed to yield a collective contract agreement for mail carriers.

Canada Post has stopped processing or delivering mail after unionized postal workers walked off the job in a dispute over wages and working conditions. The strike threatens to upend the busy holiday season for millions of Canadians and businesses.

Fifty-five thousand Canada Post workers are now on strike after the Canadian Union of Postal Workers and the crown corporation failed to reach an agreement before the midnight deadline on Friday. Jaden Lee-Lincoln has more on where the two sides stand.

Workers at Canada Post went on strike Friday in a move that is expected to create delays and other disruptions to mail and parcel delivery — just as the Crown corporation prepares for what's typically its busiest period.