Canadian Labour Reporter

7 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2014 CANADIAN LABOUR REPORTER French made amendments to the Labour Rela- tions Act, which made certification simpler. As such, Lana Payne, Unifor's Atlantic direc- tor (and the former president of the Newfound- land and Labrador Federation of Labour who spearheaded the changes in 2012) accused the government of flip-flopping. "The speedy passing of Bill 22 makes it more difficult for workers to exercise their Charter (of Rights and Freedoms) right to unionize," Payne said. "We actually got word of it as they were bringing it into the house, there was no consul- tation — quite a difference in how labour legisla- tion had been adopted." But Dan Crummell, Minister of Service NL, defended the move, saying that it was important to re-evaluate the certification process and as- sess the importance of a secret ballot — for both workers and their employers. "We believe this is the best approach for employees and employers at this point in time so that we have certification that is neu- tral and fair," he said. "Research has shown that workers want to have as much informa- tion as possible from both union and employ- ers before deciding to certify. They also be- lieve that a secret ballot is important." Tenet of democracy Moreover, a secret ballot vote is a tenet of de- mocracy, Crummell went on to say. "The marking of an 'X' in secret is a powerful symbol of democracy and I believe, after consid- ering all the information again, that a two-stage certification process creates the best balance and fairness for workers." But labour groups disagree, and have ac- cused the government of tipping the scales in favour of employers. Payne, who noted there have been more than 20 applications for cer- tification in the past 18 months, said the new system breeds a culture of unfairness. "We've somehow said it's okay for an em- ployer to interfere with the ability of a worker to exercise their charter right," Payne said. "It's a complete affront to what labour legisla- tion and the Trade Union Act is supposed to do — find a fair way for workers to be able to organize themselves for the purpose of bar- gaining in a workplace." Not only does the 70-per-cent-rule encour- age voter suppression, Payne argued the new process is not as democratic as it is made out to be. She cited the province's double envelope sys- tem, in which (after first signing a union card), the ballot is placed in an envelope, which is put in another envelope with the employee's name written on the front. Hardly a "secret ballot vote," Payne said. "There are many elements to democracy and having fair rules, I would argue, is one of them. And I would argue we don't have fair rules," she added. However, employer groups countered the previous system was unfair, as card-based cer- tification begets automatic certification should 65 per cent of the employees say as much. That means the remaining 35 per cent get lost, said Vaughn Hammond, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business' director of provincial affairs for Newfoundland and Labrador. Hammond echoed the labour minister, and said the changes will bring democracy back into the certification process. "Certifying a union is a personal decision and you need to be able to do that without the pos- sibility of intimidation — a secret ballot vote al- lows that," Hammond said. "It allows employees to make a decision on unionizing their work- place without either having a union or their employer use various tactics of intimidation to make that happen or not happen." The change, he went on to say, will have little to no affect on the relationship between most employers and employees, he said, the former of whom treat their workers like family, there- fore harbouring a certain degree of loyalty. The change, he added, came about after workers asked for it. "Now we're at a place where you're going to see transparency and accountability in labour relations in the province," Hammond added. Tough times ahead for labour? This most recent legislation is a harbinger for rapidly-slipping labour rights, Payne warned. "I'm not going to sugar coat it — labour rights are very difficult to achieve for workers, and when you lose them, it's really really difficult to get them back. It requires a lot of vigilance." Particularly troubling, she said, is that the Lib- eral Party and official opposition voted along- side the government, ensuring the speedy pass- ing of Bill 22. As such, tough times could be on the horizon for the labour movement. "We've seen a number of decisions that are really hinting at a shift between the current gov- ernment and its relationship with the labour movement — which has always been an uneasy relationship — I would argue that it's going to get a heck of a lot bumpier now," she said, citing Bill 22 and the province's refusal last year to bump up minimum wage. "(These) anti-worker deci- sions are sending a clear message, and we need to be prepared for it." news Photo: Mark Blinch (Reuters) Unifor's Atlantic director, Lana Payne, said there have been more than 20 applications for certification in the province since the last time the government made changes to unionization laws in 2012. But she raised concerns over the future of the labour movement after Bill 22 passed earlier this month. New certification system transparent: CFIB < from pg. 1

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