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July 30, 2020 - No. 51
Strengthening the Arbitrary Powers of
the State
to Attack Workers' Rights
The Anti-Social, Anti-Worker and
Anti-National Direction of the
Alberta Government
• Condemn the Alberta
Government's Anti-Worker Bill 32! - Peggy Morton
• When Democracy Is
Self-Serving It Is No Longer Worthy of the
Name - George Allen
Unions Speak
Out Against Bill 32
• Alberta Federation of
Labour
• United Nurses of
Alberta
• Alberta Union of
Public Employees
• Health Sciences
Association of Alberta
For Your
Information
• Changes to the
Alberta
Labour Relations Code
Strengthening the Arbitrary
Powers of the State to Attack Workers' Rights
The Alberta Federation of Labour and many
individual unions are
mobilizing their members to oppose Bill 32 and
stand up for the
collective rights of workers and against the
blatant interference in
their affairs by the Kenney government.
 Workers' Forum calls on all workers to
join these
mobilizations, demand that Bill 32 be repealed
and stop all
anti-democratic measures based on pushing an
anti-social, anti-worker
and anti-national agenda.
The
Kenney Alberta government is looking for
undisputed power to pay the
rich and pursue integration into the U.S. Empire
and its war machine.
That is the direction it has given for the oil
industry in line with the demands of Big Oil.
Billions of
dollars in public funds are being paid to the
rich to build pipelines
to the south to feed the military beast as well
as to finance debts
and deficits while investments in social
programs are decreased, health
care is privatized, the oil barons are let off
the hook for their
orphaned and abandoned oil wells, all in the
name of economic recovery.
The government which serves narrow private
interests and their pundits
in the media, think tanks and academic
institutions, come up with
endless versions of tired old schemes in the
name of "economic
recovery" and to support the "foundational
industries," which need, in
fact, a new direction and aim.
To prevent any positive change, this government
is strengthening the
arbitrary powers of the executive to silence the
voice of the workers
and others and to block their organized struggle
in defence of their
rights and for an Alberta whose direction and
future they can discuss
and participate in setting.
The Kenney government and the rich oligarchs it
serves treat Alberta
as if it is their private property to do with as
they wish. Their
project, with its anti-social, anti-worker and
anti-national aims, can
never serve the province or people of Alberta.
Their provocative
methods which misuse the democratic institutions
to achieve and justify
what
cannot be justified can never serve the province
and people of Alberta.
Alberta workers and workers across Canada have
shown and continue to
show during the pandemic that workers are the
essential human factor
for production, progress and the well-being of
the people. Workers are
not subservient to that social force Kenney
refers to as the "job
creators." That social force represents the
obstacle, the roadblock
to solving society's problems, because that
social force is consumed by
its narrow private aim to profit off the natural
resources and the work
of working people which transforms those
resources into useful products.
Workers are the creators of the social wealth
that society and the
people depend on for their living and
well-being. They know they must
uphold the public interest if their own
individual interest is to hold
any meaning. This is why the definition of what
constitutes the public
interest and who gets to define it is at the
heart of the opposition to
the anti-democratic measures the government is
taking.
The Kenney government is espousing the tired
old neo-liberal mantra
of the Mike Harris government in Ontario and the
Harper federal
government. We are told: workers must support
the drive of the "job
creators" for greater profits and greater
control over all sectors of
the economy because something will "trickle
down" in terms of jobs,
wages and security.
 Nothing
is going to trickle down but more instability,
misery and impunity. The
recurring crises show that this ruling elite is
a spent force with
nothing to offer. They cannot solve problems
because the solving of
problems would interfere with their private
interests, privilege and
power. They are unable to think outside the
realm of imposing
their backward ideas on the people. Enough!
The actions of the Kenney government and the
governments of Ontario
and Quebec during this pandemic and crisis are a
clear message to
Alberta workers and others across Canada and
Quebec that they can
expect no solution from those who do not share
weal and woe with them.
Let us uphold the dignity of labour by building
the workers'
opposition to the anti-democratic methods being
used by governments at
all levels to further narrow private interests.
Undermining workers'
unions must not pass!
- Peggy Morton -
 The Kenney
government in Alberta tabled Bill 32, the Restoring
Balance in Alberta's Workplaces Act, 2020 on
July
7. The bill passed second reading on July 23,
and, in an all
night marathon sitting that ended the current
legislative session, the
bill was passed on the morning of July 29 and
will become law after receiving Royal Assent.
Bill 32 makes
significant
amendments to the Employment Standards Code
and the Labour Relations Code
in ways that trample workers' rights. The
government has launched this
attack on workers under the hoax of supporting
economic recovery,
restoring balance in the workplace, and getting
Albertans back to work.
In fact, the aim is to consolidate the power and
privilege of
the rich within an old normal of recurring
economic crises, devastating
insecurity of employment and a state-organized
bias favouring employers
over workers within the social relation at the
workplace.
The bill features an anti-worker aim to lower
the working and living
conditions of all Alberta workers both unionized
and not. It openly
favours private profit of the few to the
detriment of the workers who
produce all value through their work. For
example, the bill shamelessly
amends the Employment Standards Code to
allow
employers to eliminate most overtime pay for
non-union workers by averaging worked hours over
52 weeks!
The bill also greatly widens arbitrary powers
of the
Director of Employment Standards or the Minister
of Labour to grant
exemptions or variances to the Employment
Standards Code,
giving employers the ability to trample on
workers' rights with
impunity. An exemption removes the obligation of
employers to meet the
minimum criteria in the Code when they make
requests for exemptions or
variances, and allows such exemptions to be
renewed indefinitely.
 These retrogressive changes contained in the
bill are backed by a
direct attack on workers and their right to
defend themselves and
society collectively through their defence
organizations. Bill 32 seeks
to cripple workers and their unions so as to
drive down the living and
working conditions of working people generally.
The
government claims individual workers need
"freedom of choice" with
regard to their own organizations and that
government dictate through
Bill 32 will give them that "freedom." In this
regard, the bill takes
aim at the right of workers and their unions to
decide their own
affairs. The government vows to stamp out
workers' and their
unions' "political activities and other causes,"
which the ruling elite
in power do not like.
The legislation gives the Kenney government the
authority to determine that the only "legitimate" activity of unions is
"collective bargaining and representation of members" and nothing else.
Even this is a farce as workers know full well how the Kenney
government neither respects nor defends collective bargaining. This
can be seen in practice in its absolute refusal to negotiate with
public sector workers, as well as its legislated attacks on them.
The Kenney government's aim is all rights for employers and no rights for employees!
The legislation directly interferes in the
affairs of unions and the
decisions their members may take collectively.
It requires individual
workers to declare that a portion of their dues
can be used for
"political activities," otherwise the union is
deprived of that portion
of their dues. The government has the audacity
to give itself the right
to decide
what activities of a union are "political" or
not and how it spends its
money. The government is dictating to workers
and their unions how to
conduct their affairs and manage their own
money.
No Mr. Kenney,
workers and their unions are independent
organizations. You are not a
member of a workers' union and if one of your
government
members were a member in good standing of a
union then they would have
the right to discuss and decide the direction of
their union and how it
spends its money according to the rules and
regulations of the union.
 Bill 32 increases government interference in
the affairs of Alberta
workers and their unions. Its purpose is to
paralyze the unions in
order to stop the organized working class from
opposing the
government's anti-social agenda and from putting
forward their own
pro-social solutions to problems facing the
working people of Alberta
and their
economy. The Alberta working class, both
unionized and non-union
workers, will never accept such attacks on the
rights of workers and of
all Albertans to organize and speak their minds
against a government
agenda that is anti-social and anti-worker and
to fight for the right
to set a pro-social direction for the economy.
In anticipation of the passing of Bill 32 the
Alberta Federation of
Labour announced on July 27 that "a large
coalition of Alberta unions
will launch a legal challenge to Jason Kenney's
draconian new labour
bill on the grounds that it violates key
democratic rights enshrined in
the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms."
The Federation
organized a press conference on July 29 to
denounce the legislation and
the gamut of the Kenney government's anti-social
measures imposed on
Alberta and reminded the Premier that Albertans
in their thousands --
youth, seniors, workers, women -- have already
joined in mass actions
against the government's attacks. Alberta
Federation of Labour
President Gil McGowan reported that so far 26
unions and the AFL have
agreed to participate in the Charter challenge
to Bill 32. He quoted
the bible in his message to Kenney: "You have
sown the wind, now you
will reap the whirlwind."
- George Allen -
 Alberta
workers have noted that no legislation allows
"individual Albertans" to
withhold a portion of their taxes if they do not
support government
actions which they may deem not to be
"legitimate" government
activities or which they may oppose. The
anti-worker vitriol of the
Kenney government is such that it claims the
right to prohibit any
discussion in the society that does not follow
its reactionary party
line. Those who oppose the Kenney party line and
suggest another
direction for the economy that would be better
than the insecurity of a
resource-based crisis-ridden one are made persona non grata.
Jason Copping, Kenney's Minister of Labour and
Immigration confessed on July 8, during second
reading of Bill 132 in
the legislature, that the state will attack any
organization that
opposes his party's line on resource development
as the only direction
for the economy. Copping said:
"Our government also made a commitment in our
platform
to protect workers from being forced to fund
political activities and
causes without explicit opt-in approval. Bill 32
delivers on that
promise. Some national unions have used their
workers' dues to actively
campaign against Albertans, their jobs, and our
foundational
industries. For
example, Unifor launched a lawsuit against the
Northern Gateway
pipeline despite representing oil sands workers
in northern Alberta.
Mr. Speaker, we support individual workers'
rights, and we are
following through with our campaign promise to
protect workers, restore
balance, and strengthen democracy. Now, Bill 32
does not change the
ability
to campaign for causes; it simply confirms that
a worker's explicit
approval is required if they choose to support
political activities
with their union dues. This does not change the
status quo for how
unions collect their core union dues in order to
represent their
members."
 Copping
supposedly supports individual rights but not if
those rights are
expressed in a workers' collective. A collective
of workers is a
relation among individuals and between
individuals and their
collective. The individuals in the collective
have the right to work
out this relation without interference. Is this
not an expression of
democracy in
action? The government's legislative attack on
workers and their unions
is an attack on their democratic right to
fashion their own collectives
without interference.
Copping confesses that his government does not
agree with Unifor so it will use its legislative
powers to attack unions, and not just Unifor but
all unions, unless of course they side with the
government and its direction for the province
and economy.
The government attack on workers' rights is not
happening in a vacuum. The government has its
sword out for all who may
be critical of its direction. The Kenney
government recently passed the Critical
Infrastructure Defence Act, which
criminalizes people that the government declares
have blocked, damaged
or entered without reason
any "essential infrastructure" such as
pipelines, rail lines, highways,
oil sites, electrical lines, or "any other thing
prescribed by the regulations." These people can
face hefty fines and
jail sentences. The explicit target of that
legislation is
environmental activists, Indigenous nations,
local communities and
anyone else who expresses opposition to projects
they consider are in
violation of their
rights and against the public interest.
 With
Bill 32, workers and their unions are the
targets of increased state
interference in their affairs. The law will
interfere with the
collection of union dues and dictate how the
union’s money is
used. Copping confesses that the government
wants to stop discussion
and prevent unions from waging campaigns they
may deem to be in the
workers' and public interest. This includes
those defending their
rights and those demanding a stop to paying the
rich and for increased
investments in social programs. Others under the
gun may want
legislative protections for workers' health and
safety and guarantees
of security for injured and unemployed workers;
many want to see the
affirmation of hereditary and treaty rights of
Indigenous peoples and
the humanization of the social and natural
environment. The Kenney
government considers all of this objectionable
and a violation of the
rights and privileges of the rich that his
government upholds.
Workers' campaigns are often adopted by workers
participating in union conventions and meetings.
Copping says each
"worker's explicit approval is required if they
choose to support" the
union and its campaigns or not. Without workers'
individual "explicit
approval" the union will be starved of part of
its members' dues. Does
the Kenney/Copping duo have the "explicit
approval" of individual
Albertans for its campaigns and actions?
The world is far more complicated than what
Kenney or
Copping would admit. The world is not pro this
and con that. The world
needs more collectives that think for themselves
and decide on how to
spend their money without state interference and
what direction the
economy and country need to defend the people
from recurring crises and
to open a path forward.
No to State Interference in
Workers' Organizations!
Unions
Speak Out Against Bill 32
 In
a press conference on July 29, hours after the
passage of Bill 32 by
the Alberta legislature, the Alberta Federation
of Labour (AFL)
announced that 26 unions plus the AFL will be
launching a Charter
Challenge to the constitutionality of Bill
32. AFL President Gil
McGowan denounced Bill 32’s attacks on
workers and unions
and pledged an all out mobilization against
it.
The AFL had already launched a Defend Worker
Rights
Campaign to mobilize workers to speak out
against Bill 32. Since the
legislation was introduced the AFL has been
providing information on
its website to explain its features. In its most
recent post on July
24, the six major attacks on workers' rights
contained in the
legislation are elaborated:
- the averaging of overtime over 52 weeks so as
to virtually eliminate overtime pay;
- the end of minimum standards in the Employment
Standards Code;
- defunding unions;
- the intimidation of workers whose employers
will be informed of their
decision to contribute or not contribute their
union dues to support
"political
action";
- the crushing of freedom of expression by
rendering picketing ineffective;
- and, government intrusion into the affairs of
private citizens and groups.
The article quotes AFL President Gil McGowan:
"Imagine if a left-leaning government
introduced a law
giving themselves power over the internal
affairs of the Chamber of
Commerce or the Canadian Association of
Petroleum Producers. There
would be a justifiable outcry and legitimate
claims of government
overreach. But somehow this is deemed acceptable
if the targets are
workers and
labour unions. The UCP's double standard speaks
volumes about what
they're really trying to accomplish with Bill
32. This isn't about
freedom or choice. And it's certainly not about
restoring balance. As
constitutional lawyer Colin Feasby wrote in a
recent analysis of Bill
32 for the University of Calgary's Faculty of
Law blog, Bill 32 is a
'paradigmatic example' of legislative power
being used to
‘silence or impair the efficacy of political
opponents.' In other
words, it's about shutting up people the
government doesn't agree with."
In the AFL's July 7 statement launching its
opposition to Bill 32, McGowan stated:
"What this bill is really about is tipping the
scales of
power in favour of the UCP, their corporate
friends and their wealthy
donors -- at the expense of everyone else.
 "It's
about shutting down the ability of ordinary
working Albertans to pool
their money and advocate on issues that matter
to them.
"And it's about weakening the bargaining power
of workers, both in the workplace and on the
political stage." [...]
"The UCP's new labour law will weaken the
bargaining
power of Alberta workers, by dropping the floor
of rights for non-union
workers and by tying the hands of unionized
workers. And, in the
process, it will set off a race-to-the-bottom,
in terms of wages and
workplace rights."[...]
"Why is Premier Kenney so intent on attacking
workers
and unions? It's because he knows we will fight
him and his
destructive, ideological agenda. Alberta unions
have been leading the
fight against the UCP's cuts to education and
health care.
"We've been advocating for safer workplaces and
more
secure pensions. We've been calling for public
Pharmacare, affordable
child care and a plan to deal with the global
move away from fossil
fuels. We've also been arguing that going back
to 'normal' after
COVID-19 is not good enough. We know that, as a
province, we can and
should do
better."
In a press release entitled "UCP Bill 32 aimed
at
undermining unions' ability to advocate for
members" issued on July 7,
2020, the United Nurses of Alberta (UNA) says:
 "A
UCP government bill introduced today is aimed at
undermining the
ability of unions to advocate on behalf of their
members on issues like
the privatization of health care, the creation
of a national pharmacare
program, and the protection of pensions.
"Bill 32, the Restoring Balance in the
Workplace Act,
is an attempt to make it difficult for nurses in
Alberta to advocate on
public interest issues that improve conditions
for their members, their
patients, and their communities in and out of
the workplace.
"'The UCP is clearly trying to limit the
ability of
nurses and their union to stand up against a
government that would
privatize health care and jeopardize their
retirement security,' said
United Nurses of Alberta President Heather
Smith.
"Bill 32 would make Alberta the only
jurisdiction in
Canada to require union members to opt-in to
having a portion of their
dues go to 'political activities.'
"'UNA members set their union's priorities and
actions
and elect representatives to carry out those
directions,' said Smith.
‘Bill 32 creates an unnecessary administrative
burden for unions
and interferes in a democratic process that is
determined by our
members,'"[...]
"For more than four decades, UNA has advocated
for a
robust publicly funded and publicly delivered
health care system. Given
that Premier Jason Kenney has introduced
sweeping changes to increase
health care privatization in Bill 30, it is no
surprise that his
government wants to silence those who know the
system best: Alberta's
nurses.
"UNA will be taking time to thoroughly examine
Bill 32 and its impact on UNA members. Further
updates will be posted at una.ca."
The Alberta Union of Public Employees (AUPE)
issued a
press release, "Clamping down on union dues
while accepting donations
from the rich," on July 7, 2020. It says in
part:
"Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE)
members
are dropping the mask on Bill 32, which AUPE
Secretary-Treasurer Jason
Heistad says is just another UCP attack on
working people's ability to
build people power and fight for all Albertans
disguised as 'employee choice.'"[...]
"Fighting for equality in the workplace; for
better
occupational health and safety (OHS) standards
that keep us and our
families safe; for stronger social services; for
adequate, affordable
housing; for equal and fair access to free
health care: all of this is
a social issue, and it's at the heart of our
everyday mobilizing and
collective
bargaining."[...]
"The UCP want us to think this bill is about
individual
choice. It's really about dismantling our
collective power, which is
our political power. And that's clearly what
this government fears
most."
Regarding Bills 30 and 32, the Health Sciences
Association of Alberta (HSSA) President, Mike
Parker, issued the
following statement "Kenney launches his attack
on health care and
working Albertans" on July 9:
 "This
week, Jason Kenney's government tabled two of
the most damaging pieces
of legislation to health care and health-care
workers that we have seen
in decades.
"He's finally come clean with his ideological
plan to
destroy public health care and Albertans are
counting on us, just like
they've done time and time again, to defend
public health care. We've
been successful in fights like this in the past
and, with your help, we
can stand in his way once again.
"The Kenney government has tabled Bill 30: Health
Statutes Amendment Act, 2020 and Bill 32:
Restoring Balance in Alberta's Workplace Act.
We have been expecting these attacks.
"Bill 30 speeds health care towards
American-styled
privatization during a pandemic. It would see
public dollars go to
profits rather than patient care. The flow of
public dollars out of our
province to national and multinational health
corporations would come
at a time when we can least afford it, and it
would begin the decline
of the public
health-care system that Albertans have relied on
for more than half a
century.
"Bill 32 is an attack on working Albertans and
the
unions that represent them and advocate on their
behalf. It is clearly
unconstitutional based on past Supreme Court
rulings, but that will tie
us up in legal battles for years. We will have
those fights to be sure,
but we need to act now, together, to push back
at the local level.
"This bill is full of simply incorrect
innuendo. It
suggests our finances are hidden to you. As any
of you who went through
our Special Report can see, our finances and
audited financial
statements are available to any member who
wishes to review them and
they have been annually for as long as I have
been a member.
"It then suggests that we spend a vast amount
of our
dues on political activities and other causes.
This is simply incorrect
... our members have told us repeatedly (we poll
on this regularly)
that you want us to remain politically active on
issues that matter to
us. So, when a government does something that
aligns with our values
and positions,
we will praise them for it. And when a party or
a government promises
attacks on us, and then follows through, you
better believe we're going
to have something to say.
 "As
for how much of our dues is spent on this? Well,
we'd be hard pressed
to buy a specialty coffee from Starbucks every
pay period with the
savings from not paying that portion.
"And right there you can see the value of all
of us
working together. There is no way any single one
of us could have the
same clout or ability to get into the media on
our own. But our
membership of 27,000 trusted health care
professionals standing
together is a force that makes Albertans notice
what we have to say.
"That's what scares Jason Kenney and other
right-wing
politicians. Our message stands up for public
health care. We stand up
for regular, hard-working people rather than
rich executives. Albertans
see themselves more like us than they do like
Kenney's cohort. That
interrupts their path to profits and that's why
they will do whatever
they can
to silence us.
"They will try to say it's about 'choice,'
which always
means it's about privatization. They will try to
say it's about
'accountability,' which means it's about
dividing us. They will say
it's about unions that are no longer needed. I
say, we need unions now
more than ever because who else is going to
stand up to these bullies
who use the cover
of a pandemic to sneak in dangerous legislation?
"So, I urge you to stand together with me and
fight."
For
Your Information
Workers' Forum provides below some of
the major changes to the Alberta Labour
Relations Code contained in Bill 32.
Union Dues Deduction, Opt-In Requirements
 This provision is
intended to make it as difficult as possible
for a union and its members to set their own
agenda according to their
needs and in response to unfolding events. It
blocks initiatives from
the union's elected representatives and members
alike, on the basis
that all activities must conform to a
pre-determined amount or
percentage of
union dues. This amount is to be set at a time
and frequency as yet
unknown and subject to arbitrary changes at any
time. Government
interference in how union dues are collected and
used attacks the
integrity, independence and collective rights of
workers.
The Kenney government is erecting a
minefield that unions must
cross in order to pursue any activities other
than collective
bargaining and "representing the interests of
the members," which the
legislation appears to restrict to grievances
and arbitration. The red
tape and requirements to do otherwise are
massive.
First a union must produce a budget that
determines percentages of
membership dues to be used for "political
activities and causes" and
for "collective bargaining and representation of
members' interests."
No definition of what those terms mean is
provided. Activities that
require "election" by each member are to be
defined in government
regulations. Each member of the union has to
provide a written election
authorizing the union to collect dues on their
behalf for "political
activities and causes." This election can be
changed at any time.
Dues cannot be collected until a union has
complied with the
requirement to state the amount or percentage of
dues to be allocated
to "political activities or causes" or other not
yet specified
activities. In addition, every worker covered by
the collective
agreement has to make a written "election"
whether to contribute or not
to funding
designated for political activities and causes.
The union must keep the employer informed of
all authorizations and
revocations with the employer accordingly
responsible for adjusting the
collection of dues. Unnamed parties can launch
complaints to the
collection of dues. The legislation is silent as
to who can launch such
complaints. In response to a complaint, the bill
gives the Alberta
Labour Relations Board wide powers to change the
amounts allocated for
political activities and causes and even suspend
the collection of dues
altogether.
With this bill, the Kenney government attacks
the right of workers
to participate in political affairs through
their own collectives, to
develop their own independent working class
politics, to manage their
own affairs according to rules, methods and
forms they themselves work
out and organize without interference from their
employers and
governments, and to act in defence of the rights
of all.
 The arbitrary
powers the bill confers through
regulation-making are
vast. Regulations can be introduced to determine
what activities are
included in "political activities and causes,"
when and how often unions
can make changes to their dues structure or
amount, and the proportion
of dues allocated for "political activities and
causes." These
amendments apply to all existing labour
legislation in Alberta,
including the Police Officers Collective
Bargaining Act, the Public Education
Collective Bargaining Act and the Public
Service Employee Relations Act. Academic
staff associations, graduate student
associations and postdoctoral fellow
associations are not included
at present, but the Act provides that they may
be included in the future.
Picketing
Picketing is already severely restricted in
existing
legislation, regulations and the use of
court-imposed injunctions
intended to make it ineffective. Bill 32 adds
new restrictions
including, "Obstructing or impeding a person who
wishes to cross a
picket line from crossing the picket line is a
wrongful act."
Even stopping someone to provide information
about the purpose
of the picket and to ask people to respect the
picket line would now
appear to be illegal. Another new provision
states that when an
employer moves work to "employer allies" no
picketing of that employer
ally can take place without approval of the
Alberta Labour Relations
Board (ALRB).
Bill 32 provides the government with a pretext
to invoke Bill 1, the Critical
Infrastructure Defence Act
which became law on June 17. Bill 1 makes it an
offence to "without
lawful right, justification or excuse, wilfully
obstruct, interrupt or
interfere with the construction, use,
maintenance or operation of
essential infrastructure." The bill
imposes heavy penalties not only for committing
the offence prescribed
under the act but for counselling people to
commit the offence.
Certification Without a Vote
The UCP has previously passed legislation
requiring a vote for
union certification even when a clear majority
of workers have signed
cards. The Labour Relations Board has the power
to certify a union
without a vote in the case of clear misconduct
of an employer, for
example firing workers who were identified as
leaders in the organizing
drive. This power is now further limited.
Instead of certifying the
union, the Board must order a new vote and
certify "only if no other
remedy or remedies would be sufficient to
counteract the effects of the
prohibited practices."
First Contract Arbitration
Under existing law, the ALRB may order first
contract
arbitration when an employer refuses to bargain
in good faith, or has
engaged in unfair labour practices such as
firing or intimidating
workers. First contract arbitration is still
included in the new Code,
but made meaningless by the conditions imposed.
Unfair labour practices
by the
employer cannot be considered. So long as the
employer formally
recognizes the union and agrees to meet, it can
present any demands it
wants, make no effort to negotiate, and can
harass, intimidate and even
fire workers without invoking first contract
arbitration. In other
words, the employer can engage in unfair labour
practices with
impunity.
Closing the Open Period
Current labour law provides for an "open
period" during which
workers can decide to change unions. This is a
two-month period at the
end of a two-year collective agreement, or the
11th and 12th month of
subsequent years in multi-year agreements. Bill
32 now permits unions
and employers to negotiate a new collective
agreement prior to the
open period. Once the new agreement is signed,
no application can be
made by another union. This process can be
repeated endlessly. The
union must supposedly inform employees that
agreeing to the collective
agreement will mean they cannot change unions.
This clause could be
more properly called the "company union clause"
because its aim
is to allow the Christian Labour Association of
Canada (CLAC) and
employer-overlords to cook up backroom
sweetheart deals and block union
members from having any opportunity to challenge
CLAC and change
unions.
The ALRB found in the Firestone/Flint decision
in 2011 that the
practice of hastily signing a new collective
agreement before the open
period, a practice which is carried out only by
CLAC, violated workers'
rights to change their union. Bill 32 overturns
this decision.
Mediation and Post-Secondary Binding Arbitration
Bill 32 makes all provisions in academic staff
collective
agreements to resolve negotiations by binding
arbitration null and void
including ongoing arbitrations as of July 7,
2020.
Before a strike vote or lockout occurs, the
bill demands two
levels of mediation with "enhanced mediation"
added before a strike
vote can take place.
Suspension of Union Dues
Bill 32 reverses changes made by the NDP government to remove language
in the Labour Code that said the ALRB could order suspension of union
dues in the case of an "illegal" strike. The ALRB may now order
suspension of dues for up to 6 months in the case of what it determines
is an "illegal" strike. The Board may direct employers to collect the
union dues during an illegal lockout for up to 6 months.
Financial Statements
The law requires unions to provide financial
statements "to each
member" in writing. This measure is not about
the rights of members to
information. Far from it, the law deprives the
workers of their right
to decide. It will supersede the requirements of
union constitutions
and any regulations members have agreed to
follow. By demanding that
financial information be produced in writing to
each member, the
ability of the employer to gain access to this
information is greatly
enhanced, which is clearly the motive. For
example, if a union is
contemplating strike action it would normally
not make public the
status of its strike fund. Private employers are
under no such demand
to provide
financial statements to their workers.
Construction Unions
Bill 32 makes several changes to the operations
of construction
unions in Alberta and to the rules governing
major construction
projects. Workers' Forum is studying
these changes and will report on them in future
issues of the paper.
(To access articles
individually click on the black headline.)
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