Multiple industry groups, as well as Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, had called for Parliament to reconvene and pass back-to-work legislation to end the strike over the initial 13-day period.
On Tuesday, Smith reiterated her calls for legislation to force ILWU workers back to staff more than 30 B.C. port terminals.
Danielle “Ottawa shouldn’t interfere with provincial business” Smith.
Danielle and other Conservatives believe they exist in the superposition of “I can tell others what to do, but others are never allowed to tell me what to do”
Typical Torries. Rules for thee, but none for me.
As always, let’s hear it from the cheap seats: Where’s the legislation to force management to pay their workers?
I thought that the Supreme Court had ruled that most back to work legislation was unconstitutional under Section 2 of the Charter. Given how loudly Goes was criticized for trying to take away teachers Charter rights using the Notwithstanding Clause I can’t imagine the Liberals trying it.
i think the notwithstanding clause is a provincial thing, not a federal thing. Its a concession the feds had to make in order to change the constitution in the 80’s
With the patriation of the Canadian Constitution in 1982, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms brought many changes to the constitutional structure of the country. One of these was the inclusion of a notwithstanding power in Section 33. This section, often referred to as the “notwithstanding clause,” allows federal, provincial and territorial parliaments and governments to temporarily override or supersede certain Charter rights.
Any one of them can use the Notwithstanding Clause to violate our constitutional rights.
Cut the fat at the top and give the workers more pay and more benefits … simple as that
Everyone always points fingers at workers asking for a bit more pay … but no one ever bats an eye when a CEO, or company head walks away with a multimillion dollar package or bonus
All the worker benefits we all enjoy was due to striking workers … I even have an old family friend who was a longshoreman and merchant marine in the 50s and 60s who worked in the west coast with his brother for many years. Their family freely associated themselves as communists and socialists … back when it was actually a term that one could associate without being labelled a lunatic. He came back to northern Ontario … after his brother was murdered by scab labourers during a strike.
But how will CEO types pay for the yacht and fourth house that way??
Economists everywhere are wondering how to deal with economic recession or even depression.
Everyone likes to blame workers asking for to much money when they are already being paid the minimum the company can get away with.
But there are countless examples where the company complains about workers and the company can’t afford to pay … while giving major bonuses to their already high paid management or more profit to their shareholders. Always ready to freely hand over money they already have to a few people who don’t do anything for the actual business other than claim ownership and then complain that they have to share some of that wealth with the people who do all the actual work that make it all possible.
The economy is failing not because of poor people asking for more.
The economy is failing because the wealthy want everything and are never satisfied with the enormous wealth they already sit on.
Won’t someone please think of the CEOs??!!
I said it was good that a tentative agreement was reached.
I also think it is good to hear that an unacceptable deal, presented to the workers is outright rejected. The federal mediator and the BCMEA need to try harder to meet more of the union’s needs.
It never even made it to the members. Their caucus voted it down. That’s a really strong signal to the employer that they need to do better.
Reading the other comments on this - I used to relate to them until I was exposed to the industry for a while and wow… All I can say is the public has a very different narrative, one that is crafted to create support for the unions, versus the real issues they are trying to resolve.
Without port automation, the infrastructure will continue to be slow, inefficient and dangerous, involving more workers to complete simple movements. This is not how you grow a business but when forced to hire a workforce from an organization with the power to strike, how do you progress when they stick their heads in the sand and release statements like:
ILWU Canada said the recommended terms were not sufficient to protect port workers’ jobs “now or into the future.”
Let’s talk about workplace injuries and lost time, damaged cargo and the resources it costs to continue to operate in the most inefficient way possible while continuing to pay much higher wages than the average labour market. Why don’t those stats every show up when a strike is in the news?
