Wolfe Island
paramedic
station
unionizes
FRONTENAC COUNTY,
ONT. — The Wolfe Island
paramedic station in Ontario's
Frontenac County has officially
transitioned from a volunteer
operation to a unionized one.
A memorandum of settle-
ment was reached between the
employer and the Ontario Pub-
lic Service Employees Union
(OPSEU) Local 462 in early
February.
The settlement implemented
a new development plan and
transitioned the paramedics on
the island to union members.
The employees in question
are now covered by a collective
agreement.
The Wolfe Island base had
been operated by volunteers
since 1974 and was the last of its
kind in Ontario.
"This is the end of over 40
years of service by volunteers on
Wolfe Islande," said Paul Char-
bonneau, director of emergency
and transportation services and
chief of paramedic services for
the County of Frontenac.
"However, the new devel-
opment plan will significantly
improve response times to the
citizens and visitors on Wolfe
Island."
Frontenac's paramedic ser-
vices operate eight ambulance
stations and provide services to
nearly 150,000 people.
NDP
introduces
anti-scab
legislation
OTTAWA — For the 42nd ses-
sion of Parliament, the NDP has
introduced federal anti-scab
legislation as its first bill.
Introduced on Feb. 25 by
the NDP's deputy labour critic,
MP Karine Trudel, the private
member's bill would amend the
Canada Labour Code to pro-
hibit federal employers from
hiring replacement workers in
the event of a lockout or strike.
"When employers hire scabs
during a strike or lockout, it's
unfair to workers and under-
mines their right to bargain col-
lectively," said Trudel.
"Adopting this bill will send
a strong message to workers
across the country — the right
to bargain collectively about
their working conditions must
be respected."
Should it pass, the legisla-
tion would mirror similar pro-
visions in Quebec and British
Columbia, and will apply to fed-
eral employers, such as those in
telecommunications, transpor-
tation and banking.
Anti-scab legislation has
long been supported by unions,
this time including the Cana-
dian Union of Public Employees
(CUPE), which welcomed Tru-
del's bill.
Mark Hancock, CUPE's
president, said the legislation
"would give employers more in-
centive to sit down and negoti-
ate with workers, and could lead
to fewer and shorter strikes or
lockouts."
Police offi cers and security personnel protest outside the prime minister's offi ce in Tunis, Tunisia. Workers
called for improvements to pay and benefi ts as security forces continue to be targets for violent attacks.
LABOUR LENS
LABOUR BRIEFS
2
Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2016
FORMERLY CLV REPORTS
Serving labour relations professionals
since 1956
www.labour-reporter.com
Published weekly by omson Reuters
Canada Ltd.
Subscription rate: $595 per year
Customer Service
Tel: (416) 609-3800 (Toronto)
(800) 387-5164 (outside Toronto)
Fax: (416) 298-5106
Email: carswell.customerrelations@
thomsonreuters.com
Website: www.carswell.com
Director, Carswell Media
Karen Lorimer
Publisher
John Hobel (on leave)
Acting Publisher/Editor-in-Chief
Todd Humber
Editor/Supervisor
Sarah Dobson | (416) 649-7896
sarah.dobson@thomsonreuters.com
News Editor
Sabrina Nanji | (416) 649-9348
sabrina.nanji@thomsonreuters.com
News Editor
Liz Foster | (416) 298-5129
liz.foster@thomsonreuters.com
Marketing Co-ordinator
Keith Fulford | (416) 649-9585
keith.fulford@thomsonreuters.com
© 2016 Carswell, a division of omson
Reuters Canada Ltd. All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or
transmitted, in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise without the
written permission of the publisher.
e publisher is not engaged in rendering
legal, accounting or other professional
advice. If legal or other expert assistanceis
required, the services of a competent
professional should be sought. e analysis
contained herein represents the opinion of
the authors and should in no way be
construed as being either offi cial or
unoffi cial policy of any governmental body.
ISSN 0045-5113
Publications Registration 2089
Canadian Labour Reporter is part of the
Canadian HR Reporter group of
publications. Visit www.hrreporter.com
for more information.
Labour Reporter
Canadian
www.labourreporter.com
Photo:
Zoubeir
Souissi
(Reuters)
CORRECTION
The Feb. 1 issue incorrectly
named Calgary Power as the
company for IBEW Local
254. The correct company
name is TransAlta.
