Canadian Labour Reporter

Unions bolster middle class economy: Report OTTAWA — The key to a sanguine middle class is unionization, according to a report. Released by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives last month, The Union Card: A Ticket Into Middle Class Stabil- ity indicated union representation affects a worker's ability to move up the middle class ladder. Especially in hard economic times, work- ers who held a union card were buffered from devastating affects and more likely to access upward mobility opportunities. "The findings suggest that there is a huge opportunity cost for workers who lose a unionized position, especially during reces- sionary periods," said Hugh Mackenzie, an economist who co-authored the study. "Conversely, workers represented by a union tend to move a notch or two up the income ladder. They're not only better- positioned to weather economic storms, they're more likely to experience the Cana- dian middle class dream — upward income mobility." Mackenzie found about 27 per cent of full-time Canadian workers were repre- sented by a union in 2011, most of whom belonged to the upper income echelons. Among the lowest income group, that number was only eight per cent. Between 1997 and 2011, union density among private sector workers dropped from 21 per cent to 14 per cent. Typically, that translates to downward mobility as workers tend to drop a rung or two on the income ladder when private companies de- certify, the study noted. Because employer contracts negotiated by unions can shield against some of the economic repercussions of a recession, a strong labour movement can hold the key to mobility. For instance, workers who end- ed a recessionary period without union rep- resentation in the past generation dropped down the income ladder by two deciles or more, according to the CCPA. On the other hand, those who certified in the same period moved up by at least two deciles. From 2006 to 2011, workers who picked up a union card saw median in- comes increase by 39 per cent, compared to a nine per cent drop for workers who lost union jobs. This is indicative of a shrinking middle class and a lagging mobility rubric, Mack- enzie said. "Any policy discussion around middle class economics would rightly examin these startling trends and reconsider ways to fa- cilitate the rise of collective bargaining in Canada's future. The health of the middle class depends on it." ontario school bus strike averted TORONTO — Unifor ratified a new con- tract with the First Student school bus com- pany, averting a strike due to start May 21. The three-year deal provides for wage in- creases of two per cent, two per cent and 1.5 per cent, retroactive to Sept. 1, 2014. The agreement also includes several improve- ments to contract language. The 65 drivers — represented by Unifor's local 4268 — ratified the deal just hours be- fore the midnight strike deadline. In addition to serving schools in Port El- gin and Kincardine, the drivers also shuttle workers for shift changes at the Bruce Pow- er nuclear plant. Additionally, the union is calling on the Ontario government to review the prov- ince's process for handing out school bus contracts. Unifor said the current process puts pressure on operators to keep com- pensation levels low to win new routes. lAboUr brieFs 2 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2015 FoRMeRlY clV RePoRTS Serving labour relations professionals since 1956 www.labour-reporter.com Published weekly by omson Reuters canada ltd. 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Labour Reporter Canadian www.labourreporter.com Photo: Andrew Nelles (Reuters) lAboUr lens Workers at McDonald's in the United States rallied outside the fast food chain's headquarters last month during the company's annual meeting in an attempt to gain collective bargaining rights and increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour.

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