NL Conservatives, Liberals Weaken Workers’ Rights, Promote Inequality

The provincial Conservatives and Liberals have taken a page out of Stephen Harper’s ideological playbook to weaken workers’ rights and increase inequality in Newfoundland and Labrador, the United Steelworkers (USW) says.
 
“In the next provincial election, Newfoundland and Labrador families will remember how their interests have been betrayed by a Conservative-Liberal coalition that is willingly doing the bidding of corporations,” said Marty Warren, the USW’s Director for Atlantic Canada.
 
“The Conservatives and Liberals teamed up to push through a new labour law with the sole purpose of making it more difficult for working people to exercise their fundamental right to join a union,” Warren said of the passage of Bill 22.
 
“We know that, where right-wing governments have weakened workers’ rights in other jurisdictions, corporations benefit but the middle class suffers and economic and social inequality increases,” he said.
 
“Only the provincial New Democratic Party defended the rights of working people by opposing Bill 22,” Warren noted. “The New Democrats stood up for working families while the Conservatives and Liberals gave in to the unjustified demands of the business lobby.”
 
For years, labour laws in Newfoundland and Labrador were reviewed through the Strategic Partnership Council, which mandated an inclusive process with participation from business, labour and government representatives.
 
It was after four years of review – through the inclusive SPC process – that progressive labour legislation was passed in 2012, including ‘card-check certification’ in which workers can join a union when at least 65 per cent of employees sign cards supporting the union.
 
However, the province’s business lobby later abandoned the SPC and convinced the Conservatives and Liberals to weaken labour laws, without even consulting the public or labour groups.
 
The legislation passed by the Conservatives and Liberals will not allow workers to join a union even if a large majority of employees sign union cards. Instead, another step in the process will be added, requiring a secret-ballot vote by workers.
 
“Card-check certification favours democracy and freedom of choice for workers. It minimizes the potential and the opportunity for employer interference in workers’ decisions on joining unions,” Warren said.
 
“The secret-ballot process favours anti-union employers, at the expense of workers. It gives employers additional time to influence and undermine workers’ decisions. Workers have to vote in the presence of their employer – with their boss right there in the room with them,” he said.
 
“The Conservative government of Newfoundland and Labrador is using the same misleading language that Stephen Harper and right-wing American politicians have used for years to try to justify anti-union laws,” Warren added.
 
“They talk about worker choice and democracy. In reality, they are weakening workers’ rights, making it harder for them to organize and negotiate good working and living standards.
 
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For further information:
 
Marty Warren, USW District 6 Director, 416-243-8792, mwarren@usw.ca

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