TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, on the deadline for submissions to the federal consultation process on the need for anti-scab legislation to ban replacement workers in labour disputes, the United Steelworkers union (USW) is joining other unions and supporters in urging the Liberal government to finally table the bill it has promised.
“The Liberal government committed to tabling this legislation in its confidence and supply agreement with the NDP, and now it’s time to deliver,” said Marty Warren, USW National Director. “We understand the government has wanted to consult broadly on this issue and we have been happy to participate. Meetings have been held, and submissions from stakeholders are in. There is no need to make workers and their communities wait any longer to see a bill tabled and passed into law.”
USW members striking at Océan Remorquage in Sorel-Tracy, Que., along with locked-out workers at the Port de Québec, are among Canadian workers who are currently seeing their rights undermined by the use of replacement workers. The Océan Remorquage workers have been without a contract since April 2021 and on strike since June 20, 2022. The employer’s demands to weaken working conditions are an attack on work/life balance and its wage offer is well below industry standards.
“It is our experience that strikes and lockouts in which replacement workers are used last longer than they would if replacement workers were banned. Océan Remorquage is just the latest example,” said Warren. “A lengthy labour dispute can be economically devastating not only to strikers or locked-out workers and their families, but also to the community and local businesses, as workers’ ability to purchase goods and services is affected. It is in everyone’s interest to support fair legislation that promotes faster and more-effective resolutions to bargaining disputes.”
In B.C. and Quebec, where laws banning replacement workers exist, there has been a reduction in days lost due to strikes or lockouts and an increase in workplace stability, which is good for employers, workers and communities.
The USW represents 225,000 members in nearly every economic sector across Canada and is the largest private-sector union in North America, with 850,000 members in Canada, the United States and the Caribbean. Each year, thousands of workers choose to join the USW because of our strong track record in creating healthier, safer and more respectful workplaces and negotiating better working conditions and fairer compensation – including good wages, benefits and pensions.
