'Anybody in the EU would have the equivalent of a right to work in Canada,' says academic
According to recent polling, a clear majority of Canadian citizens thinks joining the European Union (EU) is either good or at least worth exploring.
More than half (57%) are willing to see it explored while 25% say it's a good idea and 17% a bad one, finds the survey of 4,000 people by spark*insights.
Should such a transition occur, it would take years of legal, political and administrative maneuvering to get there.
But as Amy Verdun, professor of comparative politics at the University of Victoria, explains, the survey results contain an important message for employers that goes beyond constitutional law: employees value stability, credible rules and leaders they can trust.
“Canada, the European Union and the old-fashioned United States, the one before Trump, were all into having a good, rules-based system where courts work and where you can trust politicians,” she says.
Canadian focus on diversity, multilateralism echo EU values
Employment-law wise, if Canada did transition to EU membership from its strong dependence on the U.S., the changes wouldn’t be as jarring as might be expected, Verdun says, since Canada’s values around multilateralism and social responsibility align more with Europe’s than with America’s.
She also points out that one of the EU’s core attractions is its single-market model, where people can move and work freely.
"They would have free movement of labour, so it means that anybody anywhere in the EU would have the equivalent of a right to work in Canada, as if they were a Canadian citizen.”
However, even without formal EU membership, that principle already exists in Canada, she says, with a growing expectation among workers that while credentials still matter, opportunity should not depend on where someone is from.
In fact, Canada is “super well-adjusted to having people from all over the world, because that's what Canada is all about,” Verdun says.
“We have half of the people in the big cities born outside of Canada … you give them the right to work, but you still need to recognize their credentials. And in the EU, that's not that much different. If you have the right to work, that doesn't mean all of your credentials are right away recognized.”
Taking inspiration from EU-style social protections
For employers, Verdun says there is a clear message: people are looking for predictable rules, consistent leadership and institutions they can trust – including the ones they work for. To tap into this, she recommends employers take cues from EU politics and social values.
“We've always been inspired by what happens in the United States, and maybe it's time to be inspired by some practices more on the other side of the Atlantic,” she says. "HR and employers in Canada can also spend a little bit of time reviewing what happens in Europe, to just be inspired by it.”
For example, employers can look at their employee benefits programs to see where stability and work-life-balance values might be emphasized – such as stronger parental leaves, right‑to‑disconnect norms, meaningful hybrid options and greener commuting incentives.
“We're in this turbulent period, and we really don't know where it's going,” she says. “But it's interesting to see that so many people are keen to have this thought exercise, and sometimes that's just enough, right? To just have the idea that we're not forever shackled to the United States.”
