Teleworking will be covered in the anti-scab bill

(Ottawa) The Trudeau government is preparing to table its anti-scab bill this Thursday, largely inspired by Quebec legislation. It goes further by prohibiting the use of replacement workers for teleworking, we learned The Press. It also provides for a financial penalty of $100,000 per day.

Federal Labor Minister Seamus O’Regan is due to table his bill in the House of Commons this Thursday. A press conference is planned for the morning.

The presidents of the Confederation of National Unions (CSN) and the Quebec Federation of Workers (FTQ), Caroline Senneville and Magali Picard, plan to be in Ottawa to react.

This is one of the most important demands of the agreement between the Liberals and the New Democrats which allows Justin Trudeau’s minority government to govern as if it were a majority. There are whispers behind the scenes that the bill responds to most of the demands made by the New Democratic Party (NDP). Its leader Jagmeet Singh must also address the media in the company of union leaders before tabling the legislative text.

The Liberals’ bill aims to prohibit the use of replacement workers during a labor dispute in sectors under the jurisdiction of the federal government, such as telecommunications and transportation.

It would prevent an employer from using teleworking to circumvent this ban, by including a fairly broad definition of what constitutes an employee.

During the strike by federal public servants last spring, a note was sent to employees of the Department of Employment and Social Development to remind them that they could choose not to exercise their right to strike and that they could decide to receive their salary if they continued to work remotely¹. The Public Service Alliance of Canada then denounced this practice.

Contract workers hired before the start of negotiations for the renewal of a collective agreement could, however, continue to work during a strike or lockout provided that they are not performing the work of a union member. This is one of the elements that unions will keep an eye on when studying the bill.

Significant financial penalty

The Canada Industrial Relations Board will also be called upon to define what would be part of maintaining activities during a labor dispute, if the employer and the union cannot agree. Unions fear that this element will be used to delay negotiations and dilute the effect of this legislation.

A financial penalty of $100,000 per day is also provided for any employer who still calls on strikebreakers.

“If we ban the use of scabs once and for all, we will make real progress in reducing labor disputes, preventing work stoppages and creating a more balanced economy while increasing wages. benefits and the respect that workers deserve,” responded the president of the Canadian Labor Congress, Bea Bruske.

NDP deputy leader Alexandre Boulerice introduced his own anti-scab bill about a year ago to keep pressure on the Liberals, the ninth attempt in 15 years for the New Democrats. The agreement between the two parties, however, specifies that the government undertakes to “submit a bill by the end of 2023” and not to adopt it.

The Liberals and Conservatives voted against one of the versions of the New Democratic bill in 2016.

The Bloc Québécois intends to support that of Minister O’Regan if it “respects the spirit of the demands of union groups in Quebec.” MP Louise Chabot, former president of the Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ), also tabled a similar bill last spring.

“The Bloc Québécois has been calling for an anti-scab law for several years in order to protect workers’ legitimate right to negotiate and we have even tabled a bill in each legislature since 1990,” she recalled.

The CSN called for dissuasive sanctions, a ban on using remote replacement workers, a ban on working for members of a bargaining unit on strike or locked out and to eliminate the intention of the employer to justify the use of strikebreakers.

Of the 10 Canadian provinces, two already have legislation that prevents the use of replacement workers: British Columbia and Quebec, which adopted its own in 1977.