Canadian Labour Reporter

as upheld in the Canadian Char- ter of Rights and Freedoms. Larry Hubich, president of the Saskatchewan Federation of La- bour, said the extension of open periods encourages union "raid- ing." "My view is that it's an attempt to undermine workers' security in the workplace and create in- stability with respect to workers' rights. It's about busting unions," Hubich said. "Taken to its extreme, it could be a continuous open period. They've extended the open pe- riod but the legislation is so loose that you could drive a truck through it. Some might suggest that the open period is open-end- ed — there's no end to it." Open periods The specific requirements con- cerning open periods vary among provinces, but each labour rela- tions act or code in Canada al- lows union members in a bar- gaining unit to change unions during a specific period of time, commonly known as the open period. During the open period, an- other union can apply for certifi- cation for the group of employees covered by that particular collec- tive agreement. To become certified, the in- coming union must file an ap- plication for certification with the provincial labour relations board and satisfy the applicable minimum level of support among members. And while some members of the labour community believe extended open periods will lead to increasingly protracted and disruptive workplace campaigns, others consider the change a wel- come one. Marilyn Braun-Pollon, prairie and agri-business vice-president for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), said unions have nothing to wor- ry about so long as they provide good value to their members. From an employer perspec- tive, Braun-Pollon said, the sim- plification of the open period process can only be beneficial. "We support the changes that simplify the process of decertifi- cation," she said. "The former system of de- certification was a complicated process and difficult for employ- ees to understand. In fact, union members were often not aware that applications must be made during this open period. We sup- port the changes to the act that simplified the process of decer- tification and believe union de- certification should be as easy as certification." The CFIB has reported 74 per cent of Saskatchewan small business owners favour more balanced labour laws and the majority of CFIB Saskatchewan members believe unions should be required to hold annual cer- tification elections in the prov- ince. Ministry clarifications The Ministry of Labour Rela- tions and Workplace Safety — in a statement provided by Rikki Boté, executive director of com- munications — clarified that the employment act simply expand- ed the open period to include those situations where a collec- tive agreement had not yet been negotiated. The open period for com- mencing to bargain a new or revised collective agreement remains unchanged at 60 to 30 days. The open period changed by the employment act was the open period prior to the expira- tion of the collective agreement, which was expanded to 120 to 90 days. "The intent of this open period being moved further from the ex- piry of the collective agreement," the statement said, "was to en- courage the parties to bargain a new collective agreement before the old agreement expires. "These changes were made in conjunction with a number of other changes to empower em- ployees with the right to choose who will represent them as well as encourage parties to a collec- tive agreement to achieve a ne- gotiated solution wherever pos- sible." The employment act was nec- essary, the ministry said, to mod- ernize and streamline legislation so it reflected the current work- place and provided the flexibil- ity needed to respond to future changes. According to the statement, the various legislations addressed by the act had not been substan- tively reviewed since the early 1990s. And while Saskatchewan's government is currently review- ing the Supreme Court decision with respect to the constitution- ality of the right to strike, the ministry said there has been no decision as to whether amend- ments to the employment act will be made or what those amend- ments might be. 2 acts to look at Hubich, however, said changes to the act must be examined along- side the Public Service Essential Services Act. "You can't look at these chang- es in a vacuum," he said. "In my view, Saskatchewan has gone from a jurisdiction in Canada that had some of the best labour legislation in the country to a jurisdiction that has got the worst labour legislation in the country." Rather than streamlining la- bour legislation, the employ- ment act has actually made things worse, he said, adding workers and employers both have dif- ficulty navigating such a dense document. Much like the extension of the open period, this was a deliberate attempt to undermine workers' rights to freedom of association, said Hubich. "All of it has been undermining workers' rights… The reason that the government has made these changes is ideological." 7 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2015 CANADIAN LABOUR REPORTER NEWS < from pg. 1 Changes made to encourage bargaining: Ministry Photo: Chris Wattie (Reuters) The Government of Saskatchewan is revisiting its Public Service Essential Services Act following a recent ruling from the Supreme Court of Canada. Members of the labour community are calling on the province to also examine the Employment Act and its expansion of open periods relating to union "raiding."

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