Employers in British Columbia think it is a good start, labour says it’s a terrible one.
Recent changes to the province’s labour code, introduced by the newly elected Liberal government, indicate that B.C. could be headed for a period of labour unrest.
Unions already have their backs up over the changes to the labour code (see box on page 14, Bill 18) and indications are the government is prepared to do more of the same with an overhaul of employment standards likely coming in the fall.
“These changes are aimed at fostering better working relationships, stimulating investment and job creation, and treating all workers fairly and equitably,” said Minister of Skills Development and Labour Graham Bruce.
But Jim Sinclair, president of the British Columbia Federation of Labour, said the changes will hurt B.C. workers not help them.
“We are not going to put thousands of workers in the streets but these changes are bad for workers,” said Sinclair.
He also vowed to fight the government if it proceeds with an employer-friendly agenda at the expense of workers.
“I think employers have a much bigger agenda. The question is how far this government is willing to go,” he said. “I hope the government will reflect and say our mandate isn’t to attack labour it is to get the economy going.”
During its 10 years in office, the previous NDP government was regularly accused of being pro-labour and uninterested in the needs of employers. Now the Liberal government is set to roll back some of the regulations introduced and listen more closely to what employers say they need to get a stagnant economy going, said Tom Knight, a professor of HR and a labour relations expert at the University of British Columbia.
The changes weren’t that surprising and the government shied away from the one issue that would have really upset labour — the ban on replacement workers.
Knight also said that the dismal performance of the NDP (with only two members elected to the legislator) could also affect labour relations. Without a strong opposition in the legislator, the unions may feel like they have a larger role to play as opposition to the government, he said.
“We think it is a good start but they still need to balance the labour code,” said John Winter, president of the B.C. Chamber of Commerce.
Winter would like the ban on replacement workers repealed. “It can’t continue the way it is,” he said. There are a lot of small, entrepreneurial companies in the province right now and they need to be able to keep their doors open for business.
If they become unionized and can’t use replacement workers they won’t survive, said Winter, adding that small businesses are now a favourite target for union drives.
Both Winter and Knight said unions in the province must accept that the working world has changed radically since the last time the labour code was reviewed and that unions must accept the need for an update.
“The unions don’t want anything to change,” said Knight. “They have become the new conservatives.”
Winter said he knows the unions will fight any bid to restore the right of businesses to use replacement workers but he called on labour to recognize the new business environment requires employers to have more flexibility.
He also said current employment standards are over-regulated and too prescriptive. There are some unscrupulous employers out there and standards must protect working people from them, but businesses also need more flexibility to thrive in the new economy, said Winter.
But Sinclair said the modern economy depends on co-operation between labour and business, and if the government continues to move in the direction it’s headed that won’t happen, he predicted.
And he said employers’ call for more flexibility is more bad news for employees. “Flexibility is a code word for no standards,” he said.
“When they say ‘flexibility’ what they really mean is they want more power to control lives of workers and pay them less.”
“I think the whole thing is up for grabs,” said Sinclair when asked what he expected to be next. “We are going to fight for those people, we will speak out and we will organize.” The new economy cannot be built at the expense of working people, he added.
“You can’t attack our basic right to exist and then ask us to co-operate. We are not demanding the end of business we don’t expect them to demand the end of labour.”
SIDEBAR
B.C. labour code changes — Bill 18
•Education is restored as an essential service. Education was an essential service until 1993. Bill 18 will reinstate that status. That doesn’t mean teachers will no longer have the right to strike. However, in the event of a labour dispute, the Labour Relations Board will be able to designate what services must continue during a strike or lockout to prevent immediate and serious disruption to education.
•Secret ballot votes on certification are ensured. Workers will have the right to vote secretly for union certification, as they do for decertification. Currently, if 55 per cent or more of employees sign a union card, certification is automatic.
•Sectoral bargaining is outlawed. In 1998, a master collective agreement was imposed on the industrial, commercial and institutional construction sector. Under the existing regime, if a new contractor is unionized, it has to accept the terms of this master agreement. Once Bill 18 is enacted, sectoral bargaining will be repealed and employers and workers will be able to negotiate contracts independently.
•Pension benefits are restored. The Pension Benefits Standards Act was amended in 1999 to allow some pension plans to suspend benefits to early retirees who chose to continue working in their previous field of employment. Bill 18 will do away with this practice and ensure that the benefits of anyone whose pension has been suspended are reinstated.
Recent changes to the province’s labour code, introduced by the newly elected Liberal government, indicate that B.C. could be headed for a period of labour unrest.
Unions already have their backs up over the changes to the labour code (see box on page 14, Bill 18) and indications are the government is prepared to do more of the same with an overhaul of employment standards likely coming in the fall.
“These changes are aimed at fostering better working relationships, stimulating investment and job creation, and treating all workers fairly and equitably,” said Minister of Skills Development and Labour Graham Bruce.
But Jim Sinclair, president of the British Columbia Federation of Labour, said the changes will hurt B.C. workers not help them.
“We are not going to put thousands of workers in the streets but these changes are bad for workers,” said Sinclair.
He also vowed to fight the government if it proceeds with an employer-friendly agenda at the expense of workers.
“I think employers have a much bigger agenda. The question is how far this government is willing to go,” he said. “I hope the government will reflect and say our mandate isn’t to attack labour it is to get the economy going.”
During its 10 years in office, the previous NDP government was regularly accused of being pro-labour and uninterested in the needs of employers. Now the Liberal government is set to roll back some of the regulations introduced and listen more closely to what employers say they need to get a stagnant economy going, said Tom Knight, a professor of HR and a labour relations expert at the University of British Columbia.
The changes weren’t that surprising and the government shied away from the one issue that would have really upset labour — the ban on replacement workers.
Knight also said that the dismal performance of the NDP (with only two members elected to the legislator) could also affect labour relations. Without a strong opposition in the legislator, the unions may feel like they have a larger role to play as opposition to the government, he said.
“We think it is a good start but they still need to balance the labour code,” said John Winter, president of the B.C. Chamber of Commerce.
Winter would like the ban on replacement workers repealed. “It can’t continue the way it is,” he said. There are a lot of small, entrepreneurial companies in the province right now and they need to be able to keep their doors open for business.
If they become unionized and can’t use replacement workers they won’t survive, said Winter, adding that small businesses are now a favourite target for union drives.
Both Winter and Knight said unions in the province must accept that the working world has changed radically since the last time the labour code was reviewed and that unions must accept the need for an update.
“The unions don’t want anything to change,” said Knight. “They have become the new conservatives.”
Winter said he knows the unions will fight any bid to restore the right of businesses to use replacement workers but he called on labour to recognize the new business environment requires employers to have more flexibility.
He also said current employment standards are over-regulated and too prescriptive. There are some unscrupulous employers out there and standards must protect working people from them, but businesses also need more flexibility to thrive in the new economy, said Winter.
But Sinclair said the modern economy depends on co-operation between labour and business, and if the government continues to move in the direction it’s headed that won’t happen, he predicted.
And he said employers’ call for more flexibility is more bad news for employees. “Flexibility is a code word for no standards,” he said.
“When they say ‘flexibility’ what they really mean is they want more power to control lives of workers and pay them less.”
“I think the whole thing is up for grabs,” said Sinclair when asked what he expected to be next. “We are going to fight for those people, we will speak out and we will organize.” The new economy cannot be built at the expense of working people, he added.
“You can’t attack our basic right to exist and then ask us to co-operate. We are not demanding the end of business we don’t expect them to demand the end of labour.”
SIDEBAR
B.C. labour code changes — Bill 18
•Education is restored as an essential service. Education was an essential service until 1993. Bill 18 will reinstate that status. That doesn’t mean teachers will no longer have the right to strike. However, in the event of a labour dispute, the Labour Relations Board will be able to designate what services must continue during a strike or lockout to prevent immediate and serious disruption to education.
•Secret ballot votes on certification are ensured. Workers will have the right to vote secretly for union certification, as they do for decertification. Currently, if 55 per cent or more of employees sign a union card, certification is automatic.
•Sectoral bargaining is outlawed. In 1998, a master collective agreement was imposed on the industrial, commercial and institutional construction sector. Under the existing regime, if a new contractor is unionized, it has to accept the terms of this master agreement. Once Bill 18 is enacted, sectoral bargaining will be repealed and employers and workers will be able to negotiate contracts independently.
•Pension benefits are restored. The Pension Benefits Standards Act was amended in 1999 to allow some pension plans to suspend benefits to early retirees who chose to continue working in their previous field of employment. Bill 18 will do away with this practice and ensure that the benefits of anyone whose pension has been suspended are reinstated.
