Description: After a long and bitter dispute, the B.C. government and the B.C. Teachers’ Federation have reached a six-year contract with the help of mediator Vince Ready. Source: The Vancouver Sun Date: 09/20/2014 Link: http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Vaughn+Palmer+Remarkably+clean+ending+bitter+dispute/10219679/story.html Related links: Column about mediator Vince Ready Profile of BCTF president Jim Iker B.C. Public School Employers’ Association BCTF Blog… Read more »
Posts By: Tom Barrett
Unions and the changing economy
Description: For many Canadians, Labour Day may not have the same significance it once did. Source: The Globe and Mail Date: 09/01/2014 Link: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/evolving-work-force-presents-new-challenges-to-unions/article20290383/ Related links: Dr. Nelson Wiseman The Canadian Labour Congress A profile of Hassan Yussuff Unifor The Canadian Freelance Union Questions for discussion: What does the article describe as the aims of… Read more »
Mediator walks out of B.C. school talks
Description: Veteran mediator Vince Ready says it’s unrealistic to expect the two sides in the B.C. schools dispute to come to an agreement by the scheduled start of classes. He had been engaged in exploratory talks with the parties in the hopes of entering mediation. Source: CBC Date: 08/30/2014 Link: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/b-c-teachers-strike-vince-ready-walks-out-of-talks-1.2751718 Related links: B.C. Teachers’… Read more »
Federal government knew TFW rules being broken, AFL says
Description: The Alberta Federation of Labour says documents show the federal government knew temporary foreign workers were being underpaid in 2013. Source: CBC Date: 08/15/2014 Link: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/temporary-foreign-worker-program-misuse-sanctioned-by-harper-government-union-says-1.2737422 Related links: The Alberta Federation of Labour The AFL’s TFW campaign The TFW program Earlier update Questions for discussion: Consult your text: what is a labour federation? Who… Read more »
Sick days similar in private, public sector
Description: A report from the Parliamentary Budget Officer finds that workers in the public sector take about the same number of paid sick days as their private-sector counterparts. Source: The Toronto Star Date: 02/06/2014 Link: http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2014/02/06/public_servants_take_similar_amount_of_sick_days_as_private_sector_report.html# Related links: The PBO report The PBO homepage News story: Federal government cracks down on sick days Ottawa Citizen… Read more »
Tory leader backs away from ‘right-to-work’
Description: Ontario Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak is no longer calling for “right-to-work” laws. Source: The Toronto Star Date: 02/21/2014 Link: http://www.thestar.com/news/queenspark/2014/02/21/tim_hudak_renounces_antiunion_righttowork_plan.html Related links: News story: Liberals pounce on Hudak Earlier story Earlier update A U.S. organization that favours “right to work” The AFL-CIO on “right to work” Questions for discussion: What is “right to… Read more »
Considering the union wage premium
Description: Unionized Canadians make more than their non-union counterparts, but the concept of the union “wage premium” is a complex one. Source: The Globe and Mail Date: 02/05/2014 Link: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/economy-lab/it-still-pays-to-be-in-a-union-but-for-how-long/article16697608/ Related links: Union member’s response (see “Working together”) Statistics Canada report Conference Board report Earlier article by Karla Thorpe A study from 2002 Questions for… Read more »
BC government fined $2 million in teachers dispute
Description: A B.C. Supreme Court justice has ruled that the B.C. government did not act in good faith in its dealings with the B.C. Teachers’ Federation and has fined the government $2 million. Source: The Globe and Mail Date: 01/27/2014 Link: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/british-columbia/bc-teachers-win-legal-fight-to-bargain-class-sizes/article16525448/ Related links: BCTF B.C. ministry of education Court decision Vancouver Sun column Globe… Read more »
Tentative agreement in UNB strike
Description: The University of New Brunswick and the university’s faculty association have reached a tentative agreement, while faculty at Mount Allison University remain on strike. Source: Global News Date: 01/30/2014 Link: http://globalnews.ca/news/1118652/unb-faculty-union-have-agreement-in-place-to-end-strike/ Related links: Mount Allison University Mount Allison Faculty Association University of New Brunswick UNB faculty association Story: Mount Allison faculty receives national support… Read more »
United Church clergy form union
Description: United Church ministers and other church workers are forming a union to seek better job security and combat bullying and overwork. Source: The Toronto Star Date: 01/21/2014 Link: http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2014/01/21/united_church_of_canada_clergy_form_their_own_union.html Related links: The United Church of Canada Unifaith Unifor CBC story Windsor Star story Questions for discussion: What is “precarious work”? Can you think of… Read more »
