Jim Hnatiuk - CHP Leader
Just when the civic worker’s strike in Toronto is becoming a bad memory, CTV News reports yesterday that the Montreal civic workers are on a one day protest strike because they have become frustrated in not having a contract for two years. Two years!..?
Today, most collective agreements are left within the control of labour and management, with the government interfering only when public pressure threatens its political interests. With upcoming local elections in Montreal, it’s a timely call on the part of the union to get the attention of their politicians (as it is for postal strikes just prior to Christmas).
When the civil workers strike it affects many municipal services including garbage pickup, city-run daycare, water and sewer work, swimming pools, summer camps, community recreation centers, museums and more. Collective agreements often lead to strikes or lockouts and in every case the citizens are left frustrated and inconvenienced. Even the short Teamsters’ strike this summer had Via Rail looking for innovative ways to apologize to customers for the inconvenience caused by the strike.
The CHP has for years proposed an alternative framework which would give maximum freedom to all parties to negotiate, while at the same time, ensuring that the citizens who pay for the services are not inconvenienced. The CHP proposal would also allow those who serve in many essential services such as police, firefighters and hospital employees (currently prohibited from having normal collective agreements) to secure agreements without endangering the public.
The CHP would undertake to develop uniform procedures for all jurisdictions and require all collective agreements to be registered with an impartial labour court equipped with professional mediators, negotiators and analysts. Six months prior to the expiry of an agreement, both parties would be notified by the labour court that serious negotiation should begin. If no agreement is reached within that six-month period, a six month extension would be authorized offering the court’s professional assistance. No strikes or lockouts would be permitted during that extension.
If, after the second period of six months, no agreement has been reached, unresolved issues would automatically be referred to the jurisdiction of the appropriate labour court for binding arbitration.
Only if the contracting parties fail to act in good faith would a labour court step in to prevent the public interest from being injured. Canadian Statistics with Human Resources indicate that the average number of hours missed because of strikes or lockouts has declined significantly since 1976, yet under the current labour regulations Canadians could be subjected to unnecessary hardship at any time. The CHP “Better Solution” will end this uncertainty; it will allow productivity to rise because of increased workplace harmony while ensuring individual rights as well as group rights to collective bargaining.
Category: CHP Communiqués
Please copy the following URL if linking to this article: Permanent Link