Labour Rights Campaigns


 

 

Summary of Legislation Restricting Collective Bargaining and Trade Union Rights in Canada

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In the past 28 years Canadians have seen a serious erosion of a fundamental and universal human right, their right to organize into a union and engage in full and free collective bargaining.

Almost every jurisdiction in Canada has experienced a major violation of the bargaining rights of its citizens. The federal and provincial governments in Canada passed 189 pieces of legislation since 1982 that have restricted, suspended or denied collective bargaining rights for Canadian workers.

Summary of Labour Laws restricting
Collective Bargaining and Trade Union Rights
1982 - 2009
(updated January 2010)
 
Type of Legislation		 Jurisdiction
Fed BC AB SK MB ON QC NB PE NS NL Total
Back to work - dispute sent to arbitration  9 4    3    13   4 3     1   37 
Back to work - settlement imposed  4  15  4  4    4  13  3    1  3  51
Suspension of bargaining rights - wage freeze or rollback imposed  8  5    1  2  6  5  2  2  4  3  38
Restrictions on certification process    1      1  2          1  5
Denial of workers' rights to join a union  1  1  2      3  2          9
Restrictions on scope of bargaining and other union activities  2  13  4  5  4  7  5  4    3  2  49
Total  24  39  10  13  7  35  29  12  2  9  9  189

 

Restrictions have been placed on the right of unions to organize. Collective agreements have been torn up. Freely negotiated wages and benefits have been taken away. Employers' proposals have been legislatively imposed on workers and the right to strike removed. Both the private and the public sectors have been hit by this phenomenon.

 

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