The Canadian government yesterday introduced back-to-work-legislation to end a labour disputethat has brought the country’s postal system to a standstill and warned it might limit
parliamentary debate to get the bill passed into law as early as this week.Federal Labour Minister Lisa Raitt indicated that the government was in no mood for a prolongeddebate in view of the fact that Canada’s House of Commons is scheduled to rise for its summer breakon Thursday.
But opposition politicians from the NDP and Liberal parties said that they expected extensivedebate over the bill. They accused the government of interfering in the labour negotiations betweenCanada Post and its workers, claiming that the government should give time for the talks to playout, according to Canadian newspaper Times & Transcript.
Under the legislation, Canada Post would have to end its lockout and employees would be requiredto perform their normal work routine. An arbitrator would be appointed by the federal government,and both sides in the dispute would put forward their best proposal in the contract dispute on thetable. The arbitrator would then choose one of the two positions – with no compromise – and itwould become the binding decision that both parties have to accept.
After tabling the bill, Raitt told reporters: “We’re going to put our best efforts in terms ofwhatever process we can use in order to get back-to-work legislation through before the Houserises. Canadians want certainty. They want to know that their mail’s going to be delivered onceagain, and that’s what we’re here for.”
When asked if the government is prepared to forcibly curtail debate so that the bill can bepassed by Thursday, Raitt said that this was how back-to-work-legislation has been adopted in thepast. “I see no reason why we wouldn’t be doing the same thing again,” she said, although she saidshe was hopeful that Canada Post and the union could reach a deal between themselves before the lawis passed. She hoped that the bill would put pressure on one or both sides to do that.
Canada Post suspended its operations across the country last Tuesday, following 12 days ofrotating strikes by the postal union CUPW that generated heavy costs and damaged mail deliverynationwide. The Canadian postal operator explained that the accelerating decline in volumes andrevenues, combined with the inability to deliver mail in a timely and safe basis, had “left thecompany with no choice but to make this decision”.
Raitt said the postal negotiations had already gone on a long time without resolution, and thatthe bill was an example of “the danger of asking Parliament to settle your dispute”. But she saidshe was “wide open” to having meetings to help facilitate them. “Our cards are on the table. Theyunderstand fully what the process is we envisioned for them in order to bring closure to thisissue. And if they don’t like the process, then they should work together to find their own.”
But the CUPW said the government’s back-to-work bill “penalises postal workers and rewardsCanada Post for locking out employees and stopping mail delivery nationwide”. National PresidentDenis Lemelin said: “The bill legislates wage increases that fall significantly below Canada Post’slast offer. Canada Post’s last offer was 1.9% in 2011, 2012 and 2013, and 2.0 % in 2014, well belowthe 3.3% rate of inflation. The Tories’ bill would lower that even further with 1.75 % in 2011,1.5% in 2012, 2% in 2013 and 2% in 2014. Imposing wage increases that are lower than Canada Post’slast offer punishes postal workers for a disruption that was caused by the corporation’s nationallockout,” he declared.
Lemelin said the bill would take $875 out of the pockets of an average full-time postal workerduring the four years of the agreement. “All told, it represents a theft of $35 million from postalworkers and their families,” he added.
The union leader said the government’s heavy-handed interventions would damage labour relationsfor years to come, and that the last time the federal government imposed back to work legislation,in 1997, it included a provision that ensured the mediator arbitrator considered the importance ofgood labour-management relations. “The current legislation contains no such provision,” he said. “The arbitrator who is assigned to do the final offer selection will not have to live with theresults. An imposed settlement will not help the post office in the long term.”
Following a meeting on Friday between Canada Post CEO Deepak Chopra and Lemelin, Canada Postsaid the two remained divided on a number of key bargaining issues — including wages, pension andsick leave. Canada Post said: “The meeting failed to bring the two sides any closer to a resolutionon the fundamental challenges facing Canada Post. The union continues to have too many demands thatwould drive up costs, limit operational flexibility and restrict Canada Post’s ability to addressfundamental problems such as declining mail volumes, competitiveness and a $3.2-billion deficit inthe pension plan. The company’s financial position has been further weakened by uncertainty androtating strikes that began on June 3 and cost close to $100 million in lost revenues.”
Chopra expressed disappointment with the union’s position and stressed that Canada Post neededto adjust its cost structure and recover from the financial damage that has been inflicted by thework disruption. He said the impact of the ongoing work disruption was growing each day, andconcluded the meeting by saying that the union’s lack of movement was not in the best interests ofthe company’s long-term sustainability.
