Answer the question given with the case study in one page. Refer to the chapter provided in the same file as the case study.

Case Incident

A Raise in Pay, But . . .

One of the main purposes of minimum wage legislation is to protect non- unionized workers in jobs requiring minimum skill levels. A minimum wage creates a “floor” above which employees or their unions may negotiate with management for higher pay rates. In 1970, Ontario’s minimum wage was set at $1.50 per hour. On January 1, 2018, the minimum wage rate in Ontario increased to $14 per hour and is promised to rise to $15 per hour in 2019. It is estimated that ten percent of the province’s workforce is paid the minimum wage rate.

In early 2018, media outlets reported protests that occurred at various Tim Horton’s outlets in Ontario over action by franchise owners to deal with rising labour costs. Union officials noted employee accounts of losing paid breaks and having to buy their own uniforms after the new minimum wage rates went into effect. The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) called for a National Day of Action in January 2018, saying that it was mobilizing concerned members of the labour movement, including the Fight for $15, the Canadian Labour Congress and labour federations across Canada, to protest such actions in response to minimum wage increases.

Protests against actions taken by Tim Horton’s and many of its franchisees were held in over 20 Ontario communities with the support of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, labour councils and other action-based worker agencies. Similar protests occurred in British Columbia, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan.

Over 20 representatives from various labour councils gathered at a Tim Horton’s location in Windsor, Ontario to protest. An OFL representative stated that she and other union representatives were there to show the workers that the labour movement and the community were there to support them and make sure they were treated with respect. Another union leader said if there was a union steward present in such a situation, steps would be taken to resolve employee concerns. Many of the workers felt afraid to raise their concerns with management due to a fear of being fired.

There was no report of how many union organizers might have been at these rallies trying to gain support among the employees to join a union.

Question

1. How could the respective roles of these two labour organizations influence actions by other parties to address the concerns raised by affected Tim Horton’s employees?

Write a one-page answer.

Refer to the following Chapter to answer the case study question:

Chapter 4

Unions: Objectives, Processes and Structure

Unions in Canada

In 2017, there were 4.8 million unionized workers in Canada.1 The extent of unionization and the characteristics of union members will be explored in the following section.

Extent of Unionization

Union density is the percentage of non-agricultural workers who are union members. It indicates the percentage of potential union members who have actually joined a union. As of the end of 2017, union density in Canada was 28.4 percent (4.4 million workers). This compares to union coverage 30.4 percent (4.8 million workers) for the same period. Union density is not the same as the percentage of employees covered by a collective agreement. There are situations where more workers are covered by a collective agreement because some employees covered by a collective agreement do not become union members. Although in some situations employees are required to become union members, this is not always the case.2

Union density can be determined for an entire country, a province or a sector of the economy such as manufacturing. Figure 4-1 shows union density and coverage by national and provincial jurisdictions for the period 2013–2017.

Union Density: A Global Picture

A 2017 report by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) noted that labour union membership among developed nations is becoming rarer. Back in 1985, 30 percent of workers in OECD countries were labour union members, and that has now fallen to just 17 percent. Some of the reasons for the fall in membership include technological and organizational changes, globalization, government policy reform and the decline of the manufacturing sector. Among OECD’s 35 members, 80 million workers in its member states are part of labour unions while an estimated 155 million are covered by collective agreements at some level, whether it be national, regional, sectoral or occupational. The share of workers covered by collective agreements has also contracted in a similar manner to labour union membership, falling from 45 percent in 1985 to 33 percent in 2015.3

Canada vs. the United States

Although Canadian union membership has continued to remain stable for several decades, union density in the United States has been slowly declining since 1984 because non-agricultural paid employment is increasing faster than unions are recruiting new members. The US Bureau of Labour Statistics reported the union membership rate—the percent of wage and salary workers who were members of unions—was unchanged at 10.7 (14.8 million). In 1983, the first year for which comparable union data are available, the union membership rate was 20.1 percent and there were 17.7 million union workers. The union membership rate of public- sector workers (34.4 percent) continued to be more than five times higher than that of private-sector workers (6.5 percent). Among states, New York continued to have the highest union membership rate (23.8 percent), while South Carolina continued to have the lowest (2.6 percent).4 Will the Canadian labour movement be able to avoid a decline

similar to that in the United States? One observer in the United States has put forward a convergence thesis holding that the decline in union density in the United States is based on market forces that will inevitably lead to the same decline in Canada.5 Canadian studies have questioned the convergence thesis, suggesting that factors such as the superior ability of Canadian unions to organize employees and more favourable political and legal environments in Canada do not make a decline in Canadian union density inevitable.6

Political Environment

Unions in Canada have benefited from a different political environment than in the United States. Canada has had a social democratic party since 1932 (the CCF—now the NDP) which has promoted labour’s interests in provincial legislatures and Parliament. Canada’s multi-party system, which has a fairly strong labour party, has prevented Canada from drifting as far to the right of the political spectrum as seen in the United States. The lack of a "socialist" party in the United States could also be said to have created somewhat wider economic-level divisions in American society compared to Canada, where several social safety-net and health care programs are in place, mostly as a result of the existence of such a political party. Although the New Democratic Party (NDP) has not formed a government at the federal level, it has been able to influence legislation, especially when it has held the balance of power in a minority government. While the Liberals and Conservatives have alternated as the ruling parties at the federal level in Canada, the existence of the NDP has been a mitigating force on them, and led to certain socialistic policies.7 This different political environment is one of the reasons why the legal environment is more favourable to unions in Canada than in the United States.

Legal Environment

Labour relations laws in Canada provide for a certification process that is more favourable to unions when compared to other political jurisdictions (i.e., the United States). A union can be certified without a vote on the basis of signed membership cards in several Canadian jurisdictions. This is favourable to unions because it reduces the employer’s opportunity to campaign against the union or intimidate employees. In Canadian jurisdictions that require a vote as part of the certification process, the vote is held shortly after the application for certification is filed with a government labour board. In the United States, there is a longer delay between the application for certification and the vote, which allows the employer to campaign against the union or intimidate workers. The certification process will be further discussed in Chapter 6 .

In most Canadian jurisdictions, the law allows for union dues to be deducted from the pay of all bargaining unit employees at the request of the union. Compulsory union membership may also be a stated requirement in a collective agreement. In the United States, there are 28 states that have right-to-work legislation . These laws mean that employees who work at a unionized workplace and do not support the union or do not want to be part of the union can opt out of paying dues. In American states that do not have right-to-work laws, workers hired at a unionized workplace can be required to join a union and pay union dues.8 The more favourable union security provisions in Canada may assist unions by providing a secure financial base for their operations and by eliminating the contentious issue of the deduction of dues from the negotiation of first collective agreements.

Labour relations legislation is also more quickly and strictly enforced in Canada than in the United States. This serves as a deterrent to employers who might consider prohibited conduct to oppose a union.9 In Canada, legislation granting bargaining rights to public-sector employees is more favourable to unions than in the United States. A union’s right to strike during collective bargaining has also been less restricted in this country than in the United States. There are also fewer limitations on contract issues that can be the subject of negotiations. These differences may make unionization more attractive to Canadian public-sector employees.

Employer Opposition

There is evidence that employers in the United States actively oppose unionization more than Canadian employers do. A former chair of the National Labor Relations Board in the United States has stated, “The American legal system has clearly permitted employers to vigorously oppose unions, and they have done this with devastating effects upon the labour movement.”10 Although political, legal and other factors may have allowed unions in Canada to maintain a higher union density than in the United States to date, some observers are pessimistic about the future.11 A closer look at right-to-work legislation for Canada, with its attendant benefits for the manufacturing sector in particular, has also been suggested.12

Characteristics of Union Members Employment Status, Full- vs. Part-Time

Union density for part-time Canadian employees is 23.3 percent.13 The organization of part-time employees continues to be a challenge for unions. Many such workers are employed in the private-service sector, where unions have had difficulty organizing in the past. Part-time employees may not be engaged with the same employer for long periods of time, which also can frustrate union organizers. The use of part-time employees has been a source of conflict between unions and employers. Unions have sought to establish or continue contract provisions that restrict the use of non-union part-time employees. One example of a long

struggle by a union to certify part-time employees was OPSEU’s successful campaign to represent 20,000 teaching staff at Ontario community colleges.14

Increase in Female Membership

Over the span from 1981 to 2014, the union density in Canada for male workers dropped from 41 percent to 27 percent. For female workers over the same period the rate remained relatively stable, varying between 30 percent and 32 percent. The higher rates for older women are in part attributable to their concentration in industries with high union density, such as health care, education and the public service. These numbers, as seen in Figure 4-3 , reflect trends which are also likely to continue.15 This increase in female union membership has practical significance for both unions and employers. Unions have found that they must increasingly deal with issues relevant to their female members such as child care, sexual harassment, flexible hours and pay equity.

Age

Figures 4-4 (a) and (b) show interesting demographic shifts regarding the age of male and female union members between 1981–2014. The fall in the unionization rate has been greatest among young workers. The rate for men decreased for every age bracket but was especially pronounced in the 25–34 and 35–44 age groups. The unionization rate for young women also decreased, but to a lesser extent than for men, mainly because the declines in the 1980s and 1990s were offset by gains in the 2000s.

One reason for the decline in the unionization rate for young men was the employment shift from industries and occupations with high unionization rates, such as construction and manufacturing, to industries and occupations with lower rates, such as retail trade and professional services. However, employment shifts were not the sole reason for changes in the unionization rate. For example, among men aged 25–34, employment shifts were behind less than half of the total decrease in the unionization rate from 1981 to 1998. This means that changes within industries and occupations also played a role.16

Education

Union members may have higher levels of education than is commonly perceived. More than 40 percent of union members have a post- secondary certificate or diploma, and 33.6 percent have a university degree.17

Types of Unions

Historically, a distinction has been drawn between craft unions and industrial unions . Craft unions may be traced back to the guild system of the Middle Ages, where skilled craftsmen provided goods and services needed in their community. Blacksmiths, glaziers, carpenters and coopers, among many such skilled artisans, also trained apprentices to succeed them, set prices for their work and provided financial support to their peers in times of injury or illness. A craft union limits its membership to a particular trade or occupation such as electricians or airline pilots. The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) is an example. Such unions have also been referred to as horizontal unions because they organize employees across different firms. An industrial union, on the other hand, organizes different types of workers in a company, including skilled and unskilled workers. Unifor is an example of an industrial union.

The distinction between craft and industrial unions is not as important as it was in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Then, it was one of the factors sharply dividing the labour movement. Craft unions, the first to develop in North America, did not support the development of industrial unions.

In the past, there has also been a distinction between public-sector and private-sector unions. This distinction is breaking down as public-sector unions are now organizing employees in the private sector and vice versa. The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) has organized employees in the airline industry; Unifor has organized employees in the federal public service; and the United Steelworkers Union (USW) has organized taxi drivers and grocery store employees. In short, the name of a union no longer indicates the type of employees represented. It is possible that several unions could organize workers in the same industry. For example, Unifor, CUPE and other unions have organized casino employees.

Union Objectives and Processes

The framework outlined in Chapter 1 provides that union objectives and processes are a key part of labour relations. Processes in that framework refer to union activities and methods, such as contract negotiation, which are used to achieve union objectives. This section broadly outlines the objectives and activities of unions; subsequent chapters will elaborate on activities such as contract negotiation.

There is significant variation in the extent to which unions pursue the objectives outlined here. For example, some unions do not engage in political activity. John Godard has written about union roles and objectives; although this section uses different terminology, the objectives referred to here are based upon his analysis.18 Union objectives and activities are summarized in Figure 4-6 .

Improving Terms and Conditions of Work

Unions seek to improve wages, benefits and other terms of work for the employees they represent. Although this is largely an economic role, this objective also includes non-economic issues such as health and safety, work hours and job security. Some of the improvements in working terms that unions are able to achieve will be adopted in the non-union sector. Although organizing employees, contract negotiations, strikes and walkouts and grievance and arbitration processes are the most familiar union methods used to improve terms or conditions of work, the remainder of the methods listed in Figure 4-6 could be utilized. The Meiorin case, referred to in Chapter 2 , illustrates how a union has used the courts to appeal an arbitration decision and obtain the reinstatement of an employee. Unions also participate with employers in joint labour- management committees focused on workplace issues such as health and safety or layoff redeployment that will benefit employees. Unions may engage in unilateral action, such as providing training to their members relating to harassment, which will improve the employee’s workplace experience.

Political activity by unions includes lobbying for changes in legislation that will facilitate the organization of employees. For example, the United Food and Commercial Workers union (UFCW) has lobbied to change legislation that prohibits agricultural workers from organizing in some provinces. Political activity could also involve working to elect a government that will pass legislation that could help a union negotiate more favourable terms of employment, such as a ban on replacement workers during a strike. Some public relations efforts by unions are aimed at convincing members of the community to support particular unions during contract negotiations with employers. This is especially significant in the public sector where unions have used various forms of media advertising to try to obtain public support.

Protecting Employees Against Arbitrary Management Action

Godard has referred to a workplace democratization role for unions. Unions, through terms that are negotiated in the collective agreement, can protect employees from arbitrary management decisions. Later, we will see collective agreements that protect employees from being disciplined without sufficient reasons provided by management. The grievance and arbitration process, which is elaborated upon in Chapter 10 , can be used to challenge rules established by management. A union may be able to protect freedom of speech through the collective agreement and the grievance process. In one case, a hospital employer attempted to prohibit the posting of a legal opinion relating to the issue of mandatory vaccinations. The union successfully challenged the employer directive.19

Providing a Process for Conflict Resolution and Employee Input

By providing a process for the resolution of conflict and employee input, unions may assist employers and increase productivity. Briefly, union input may facilitate change to working conditions that, in the past, have caused employees to quit. Unions can play a problem-solving role with employers, which may increase efficiency. The grievance and arbitration process and union–management committees are the key methods used here.

Pursuing Economic and Social Change

Unions also have objectives for the wider society beyond the work setting. The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union developed a national campaign to make child care services a priority for government. The union sought to build a strong and effective grassroots movement to elect a family-friendly federal government in 2015 that was committed to a national daycare program. The union’s website (www.ufcw.ca) provides a range of resources to its members, along with other community groups, to support various campaigns for social change.

To understand unions, it is necessary to know about the organizational structures they create as well as the functions of various union bodies.

Union Structure and Functions

As discussed in Chapter 1 , unions should be considered a business seeking to organize and represent dissatisfied employees regarding their terms and conditions of employment with an employer. Businesses have organizational structures that range from simple to complex in design and function. A union local represents the basic structural unit found in a work setting.

Union Local

The union local , or simply the local, is an administrative unit of a national or international union organization. The roles and responsibilities of union locals are set out in the required constitution and bylaws of the larger (sometimes referred to as “parent”) union organizational structures. There are over 14,000 locals in Canada. Figure 4-7 illustrates the structure of the Canadian labour movement.

Many union locals have a membership consisting of those who work for one employer in a municipality. Others have members who work for different employers in a municipality. The latter may be referred to as amalgamated or composite locals; an example is Unifor (formerly the CAW) Local 52A representing hundreds of educational support and clerical staff in schools across northern Alberta.

An employer might deal with one or more locals that belong to one or more unions. In the simplest case, an employer might deal with one local of a union. An example would be the production workers in an auto parts plant who are represented by a local of Unifor. A college could have employees that belong to two locals of the same union, one for faculty and one for support staff. Each local would have its own collective agreement with the employer. In a more complex situation, an employer might deal with several locals, each belonging to a different union. For example, a large urban hospital might deal with several locals belonging to different unions that represent nursing staff, clerical workers, maintenance employees and kitchen staff.

Unions operate on democratic principles that give their members a direct voice in decision making regarding union matters. Local members will elect the officers, usually a president, secretary, treasurer and stewards. Some locals may have an executive committee with members serving in leadership positions. In larger locals, some officers may hold their union positions full-time, but in many locals the officers serve on a part-time basis. Larger locals may also have paid administrative staff. An example of a union local organizational chart for IBEW 2228, representing 1,700 workers in Canada, may be accessed by the website seen below.

A local can have its own bylaws and constitution; however, these must comply with any constitutional provisions of its national or international union authority. The bylaws set out matters relating to the governance of the local, including election and duties of officers as well as rules regarding meetings and committee structures. The executive of the local usually has the authority to deal with the employer on day-to-day labour relations issues. Some unions require a general membership meeting to be held within specified times, while others allow for general membership meetings to be held when needed.

A key liaison between the parent union head office and its local branches is the business agent . This is a resource person who, based on their experience and training, work for one or more union locals handling grievances, assisting with contract negotiations and providing other administrative or consulting services. Union locals obtain their operating funds from union dues. The amount of dues is determined by the parent union or at the union local level. The union and employer may agree to deduct dues on a regular basis from the paycheques of union members and remit the money to the parent union. Dues are a specified percentage of an employee’s earnings, typically 1 to 2 percent, determined through a voting process by the union membership. Unions prefer to base dues on a percentage of earnings to avoid having to go to the membership to have dues increased as earnings rise. A percentage of dues may be allocated to specific areas, such as establishing a strike fund.

Functions of the Local

The local might be involved with one or more of the functions listed in Key Considerations 4-1 , depending on its size, the parent union and the

Most locals have a key role to play in contract negotiation with the employer, which is frequently done at the local level. The details of this activity, including how a local prepares for negotiations, are considered in Chapter 8 . Although there is some variation between unions, the local usually plays a key role in the day-to-day administration of the collective agreement. If an employee thinks the collective agreement has been violated, he or she contacts their steward or the chief steward of the union local to file a grievance.

Union locals may also become involved with the education of their members, often with the assistance of a national or international representative. For example, a local could provide training relating to the filing of a grievance. Some locals engage in charitable work such as the

United Way campaign or other community affairs. Union locals may get involved in political issues. Although national unions and other union bodies deal with political questions at the provincial and national levels, a large local may also get involved in such matters, often through a labour council, which shall be described later in this chapter.

Independent Local Unions

Unions that do not belong to a national or international union, such as faculty associations at some universities, are known as independent local unions . They are different from the previously discussed union local. These unions make up only 3.9 percent (188,609) of union membership in Canada. They do not have access to the kind of support or services that national and international unions provide to their locals.

National and International Unions

The vast majority of union locals in Canada are associated with a national or international union. A generic term for these larger organizational units is parent unions .20 The term national union is a bit misleading; it refers to a union whose membership is confined to Canada, although it may not have members in all provinces. Thus, CUPE and Unifor, but also the British Columbia Nurses Union and the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation, are national unions. An international union has members in more than one country (e.g., both Canada and the United States) with its headquarters in one of the countries. The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union and the United Steelworkers of America are examples of international unions. In 2015, there were 196 national (3.4 million members) and 40 international (1.2 million members) unions in Canada. Figure 4-8 lists the 12 largest unions in Canada and their websites. It is recommended that you visit some of the sites to see examples of the union functions, constitutions and activities discussed below.

At the time of union certification at a workplace, government labour boards require the sponsoring parent union to present evidence that it is a democratically governed organization. The supreme governing mechanism of the union is the convention, a general meeting typically held every one or two years, to which union locals are entitled to send member delegates. In most cases, the number of delegates sent by a local is based upon the size of the local; however, in a few exceptional cases, all locals are entitled to the same representation. At the convention, officers are elected, policy matters are discussed and resolutions voted upon. Unions also demonstrate their democratic principles through governing documents such as a constitution and bylaws. The Unifor website, provided in the margin, provides an example of a union constitution. The relationship between the parent national or international union and its union locals may affect an employer. The constitution of a provincial union may prevent or limit the authority of union local officers in dealings with an employer. For example, a national representative’s signature may be required on all grievance settlements. The national or international union may also influence the demands negotiated by the union local. For example, in contract negotiations, the national representative may warn union local negotiators not to agree to any language in the renewed agreement that endorsed contracting out practices by the employer. Other parent unions may provide more discretion to their local executive leaders in these and other matters. Although it rarely occurs, the constitution of a union will provide for the possible trusteeship of a local—that is, the national or international union may take control of the local’s affairs if it fails to comply with the union’s constitution, directives or financial affairs.

The parent union serves as a key resource centre to its union locals. As noted earlier, the business agent from the parent union office advises the union local executive members of available resources and services to assist in the day-to-day administration of the collective agreement and other labour relations needs. It may assist locals with the grievance process by providing one or more of the following: advice on the interpretation of the collective agreement, a database of previous arbitration decisions interpreting the collective agreement, research on related arbitration decisions and a grievance officer or lawyer to appear for the local at an arbitration hearing. Parent union staff may be called on to assist locals with contract negotiations by providing research information on collective agreements in the industry and by sending a representative to be part of the bargaining team negotiating with the employer. It may also offer training in various subjects to union local stewards, including the health and safety inspections, human rights complaints, media relations and return-to-work planning for injured workers. The legal relationship between a parent union and its union local is described in Labour Relations Issue 4-1 .

Unions also seek to influence government legislation and policy directions through lobbying, advertising and appearances before parliamentary and legislative committees. Parent unions have also turned to the courts to achieve their objectives. In 2014, the Public Service



Alliance of Canada filed a constitutional challenge to Bill C-4 in the Ontario Court of Justice. The challenge focuses on several key areas, including: the definition of essential services and which workers perform them; amendments to dispute resolution mechanisms; and limitations on the fundamental rights of federal public service employees as guaranteed under Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

National and international unions also provide financial assistance and expertise to locals on strike action and attempts to organize non- unionized workers. The process through which a union obtains the right to represent a new bargaining unit is considered in Chapter 6 .

Labour Federations and Congresses

Labour relations history has shown a desire of unions to form “umbrella organizations” to represent their interests to governments and to serve their membership on other matters of importance. In Canada, such contemporary union organizations include labour federations and labour congresses .

Every province has a labour federation, belonging to a national umbrella body known as the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC). Figure 4-9 lists the websites for the provincial and territorial federations.

Provincial labour federations are involved in the following activities: lobbying the provincial governments regarding employment and labour relations legislation; pursuing provincial economic and social policy favourable to workers; conducting research related to workplace issues; educating members; and supporting unions on strike. While human resources professionals do not deal directly with these organizations, it is recommended that you go to the website for the federation in your province to learn about its functions and activities.

You will recall that oversight of Canadian employment and labour relations is divided between federal and provincial jurisdictions, with provinces regulating 90 percent of employers. A key role performed by labour federations is lobbying provincial governments regarding changes to employment standards and labour legislation and policy directions. When a province is considering amendments to workplace legislation, the provincial federation of labour will put forward a union position. For example, in early 2018, the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) supported new provincial legislation, the Pay Transparency Act, requiring employers to disclose their wages to demonstrate compliance with their existing legal obligations under Ontario’s Human Rights Code and the Pay Equity Act. Employers in the Ontario Public Service will first be required to adhere to the pay transparency obligations. Subsequently, following consultations, the obligation will then be extended to employers with more than 500 employees and finally, to those with more than 250 employees. The OFL endorsed the recommendations put forth by the Equal Pay Coalition to strengthen the Pay Transparency Act, including that it must apply to all private- and public-sector employers with more than 10 employees to match the Pay Equity Act. The OFL argued that although all Ontario employers are required to deliver discrimination-free pay under the Pay Equity Act, the reality is that more than half of employers have created and perpetuated the gender pay gap. As a result, on average, Ontario women earn approximately 68 cents for every dollar that men

earn. This gap is significantly more pronounced for Indigenous, racialized and immigrant women as well as women with disabilities.21

An example of advocacy and educational work performed by labour federation is seen at the British Columbia Federation of Labour (BCFED). The Young Workers’ Committee (YWC) is a standing committee of the BCFED dedicated to encouraging union participation among young people. The committee discusses inequity that young workers face as a result of discriminatory beliefs, policies and legislation. The Young Workers’ Committee (YWC) fights on behalf of all working people in British Columbia for better employment standards and safer working conditions. The YWC educates students in high schools about employments standards and workers’ rights, as well as the role unions play in improving our society. Young workers’ committee meetings are open to any union member 30 years old and younger, with monthly meetings at the BC Federation of Labour office.22

Provincial federations of labour do not become directly involved in the negotiation or administration of collective agreements. Union locals handle the negotiation and administration of collective agreements with the assistance of their national or international union.

National Labour Congresses

The largest Canadian national labour congress is the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), which represents 3.3 million Canadian workers across national, international and directly chartered unions in the country.23 A directly chartered union is a local union that has received a charter directly from a labour congress and is not part of a national or international union. There are only a few such unions, and their membership amounts to only about 1.9 percent of total Canadian union membership, mostly chartered by one of several Quebec labour congresses. Figure 4-10 shows total union affiliation among the various labour congresses in Canada in 2015.

The constitution of the Canadian Labour Congress, which sets out how the CLC is organized and governed, is available at the organization’s website (www.canadianlabour.ca). Unions that belong to the CLC send delegates to a convention that is held every two years. The conventions elect officers who are responsible for the operations of the CLC between conventions.

The functions of the CLC are listed in Key Considerations 4-3 . It is recommended that you visit the Congress’s website, which illustrates its functions and current activities.

One of the key responsibilities of the Canadian Labour Congress is pursuing changes that are favourable to workers and unions in federal employment and labour relations legislation. For example, the CLC advocates in Parliament and in the courts to advance legislation that improves the work lives of Canadians, such as workplace safety, collective bargaining rights and employment equity. In 2016, the CLC applauded the federal government’s announced banning of the manufacture, import, export and use of asbestos. The ban followed a re- doubling of labour union efforts, via media and public education, to have the government ban this hazardous substance. The CLC noted that experts estimate that 150,000 Canadians are exposed to asbestos at work, particularly in industries like construction, automobile maintenance, shipbuilding, trade contractors and waste management. CLC president Hassan Yussuff called on provincial and territorial government leaders to take similar actions to protect Canadian workers.24 The Canadian Labour

Congress also comments on numerous social and economic issues that impact Canadians. In a news release in early 2018, the CLC called on the federal government to address 11 key issues in its annual budget, including: a commitment to universal pharmacare; funding for a public education campaign on gender-based harassment and violence; and a “Just Transition” training and adjustment fund for workers affected by climate change and the transition to a low-carbon economy, automation and the digitization of work and job losses caused by trade agreements.25

The CLC has a code of ethical practices in its constitution, which provides for adequate membership meetings in union locals, democratic elections and honest financial management. A union that fails to adhere to this code can be suspended. The CLC also utilizes a disputes protocol, the purpose of which is to prevent raiding between affiliated unions and to establish a procedure for employees to change unions. Labour Relations 4-2 describes an incident on the subject of raiding involving the Canadian Labour Congress. Raiding refers to one union persuading members of another union to change unions. The practice is generally discouraged in the labour movement, but if the raiding union successfully applies to represent the employees, a situation that is elaborated upon in Chapter 6 , it replaces the first union and becomes the bargaining agent for the employees.

Labour Councils

A labour council is an association of unions in a municipality or region, such as the Vancouver and District Labour Council. These councils work to improve their communities as well as to advance the interests of unions at the regional or municipal level. Their functions include community and charity work, political activity at the local or regional level, training and education on union topics and assisting union locals on strike. An example of the range of community and labour relations issues of interest to a labour council may be seen at the Toronto and York Region Labour Council’s website (www.labourcouncil.ca). The Vancouver and District Labour Council’s website shows the various committees it has formed to deal with both labour relations and community-focused interests. Labour councils do not become directly involved with employers in the negotiation or administration of collective agreements.

Union locals belonging to a labour council pay a levy based on the size of their memberships and are represented by delegates who elect officers to do most of the council’s work. The council will have a constitution and bylaws. The constitution of the Canadian Labour Congress requires its affiliated unions to join the labour council in their region; however, some CLC-affiliated locals have not done so.

Other Features of Union Structure

This final section will consider the interplay between union structures and current political, legal and trade issues including the fragmentation of the labour movement, the Canadianizing of unions, political and legal influences and international commerce.

Union Fragmentation

By international standards, Canada has a large number of small unions, even though the trend has been toward unions with a membership of 50,000 or more. In 2015, the total number of unions in the country stood at 776. Eight of those unions—five of which were national and three international—represented 100,000 or more workers each and comprised 45.1 percent of all unionized workers in Canada. At the other end of the spectrum, 282 unions had less than 1,000 members each and 140 unions each had between 1,000 and 9,999 members.27 Small parent unions with small local membership may lack sufficient resources to fully support union-wide or union local-specific needs such as new member organizing drives, contract negotiation and the grievance and arbitration consultations.

Canadianizing of Unions

In Canada, unions can be divided into four main types: national, international, independent local organization, and directly chartered locals (those directly chartered by a labour congress). In the early 1900s, 95 percent of Canadian union members belonged to US-based international unions. In 2015, a strong majority (69.7%) of unionized workers in this country were affiliated with national unions. International unions accounted for almost 25 percent of unionized workers, followed

by independent local organizations (3.9%) and directly chartered locals (1.5%).28 There are several reasons for this increase in national union membership relative to international union membership. Some Canadian union branches broke away from their international unions in recent decades after disagreeing on policy matters. The establishment of unionization in the Canadian public sector also increased national union membership relative to international membership. Canadian unions appear to have been more active than American unions in organizing employees. There does not appear to be any research examining whether national unions have made greater efforts to organize than the Canadian branches of international unions. However, there is evidence that international unions are not as effective in organizing campaigns as Canadian national unions. A study of factors affecting the success rate of organizing drives in Nova Scotia over a 10-year period found that national unions had a higher rate of success than international unions.29

Unions and Politics

Unions, and their umbrella organizations, are involved in political activity for a number of reasons. One is to influence labour relations legislation, which extensively regulates union–management relations and can make it more or less difficult for a union to obtain the right to represent employees. We will see in Chapter 6 that in some jurisdictions a union can obtain the right to represent employees on the basis of signed membership cards without a vote of employees. Surveys of unions to determine their goals, policies and practices have found that the majority of unions engage in political action to change public policy and bring about social and economic change.30

Unions are also interested in issues that affect workers away from their jobs, such as the privatization of health care, the environment and access to education. They can involve themselves in a number of ways: electing

independent labour representatives to parliament; supporting a political party that adopts pro-labour policies; working within and supporting one political party such as the NDP; or using more radical methods such as a general strike. However, they have at times disagreed over what political objectives to pursue and how to pursue them. Legislative changes, the economy and employer policies and practices have all posed challenges. Governments have restricted bargaining outcomes and weakened the position of unions. The economic environment has included periods of recession and the threats posed by free trade. Some employers have fought union certification, and others have engaged in hard bargaining.

Legislation

In 1975, in response to high inflation the federal government imposed a program of wage and price controls on both the public and the private sector that prohibited wage increases above specified levels. This restricted the results parent unions and their locals could achieve through contract negotiation. Subsequently, in 1982, again in response to inflation, the federal government established a public-sector wage control program that limited increases to 6 percent in the first year and 5 percent in the second year. The “6 and 5” program resulted in almost one-third of organized workers losing the right to strike for up to three years. The provinces enacted similar public-sector wage controls. This legislation did not affect the right to bargain or the form of bargaining; however, it limited the outcomes unions could achieve. In 1991, the federal government froze public-sector wages and imposed back-to-work legislation. Provincial governments followed suit. For example, in 1993 Ontario established social contract legislation that rolled back wage increases in collective agreements previously negotiated and effectively displaced free collective bargaining for public-sector workers for three years.

Economic Developments

The economic effects of the 1994 North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) are controversial. Unions predicted that the agreement would lead to the loss of jobs and lower wages in Canada. Some studies show that the overall effects of NAFTA have not been as negative as unions predicted.31 There is also evidence that NAFTA currently benefits citizens in the United States and Canada.32 In 2018, NAFTA negotiations from the perspective of the United States government carried a real “protectionist” tone that sought to restore jobs and the industrial base in auto manufacturing for American workers. Two major Canadian unions— Unifor and Teamsters Canada—involved in the auto industry have endorsed the Canadian government’s proposed labour chapter of the NAFTA talks.33 To deal with “what comes next” for NAFTA, it has been suggested that even if an acceptable deal emerges down the road, the reality is Canada will always be exposed to the impact of US trade policies, whether under President Trump or his successor. The suggestion is that Canadian trade policies that explore additional international trade agreements with Asian, European and South American countries to reduce a dependency on US trade will no doubt continue to be monitored by labour leaders of national and international unions, labour federations and labour congresses in Canada.34