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The International Labour Organization ruled in 2010 that Bills 5 and 6 violated Canada's international labour law commitments.
Ottawa (18 Oct. 2013) - The Supreme Court of Canada has agreed to hear an appeal on the constitutionality of two Saskatchewan labour laws passed in June 2008 – Bill 5, the Public Service Essential Services Act and Bill 6, the Trade Union Amendment Act.
NUPGE and other unions looks to Supreme Court of Canada to address gross violations of workers rights in Bill 5 and 6
NUPGE's Saskatchewan Component, Saskatchewan Government and General Employees (SGEU/NUPGE) along with the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour (SFL) and several other unions in the province, sought leave to appeal the April 2013 decision of the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal. That decision overturned a February 2012 decision from Regina Court of Queen's Bench judge, Justice Dennis Ball, who ruled that Bill 5 was unconstitutional.
Justice Ball's decision noted that "no other essential services legislation in Canada comes close to prohibiting the right to strike as broadly, and as significantly." Ball stated that he was “satisfied that the right to strike is a fundamental freedom protected by s.2(d) of the Charter along with the interdependent rights to organize and to bargain collectively.”
The Court of Appeal did not necessarily reject Justice Ball's decision. In fact, it recognized that Canadian law has evolved to a point where a right to strike may be protected by the Constitution, although it felt that it could not overturn previous Supreme Court decisions respecting a right to strike. “The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) ruled in the 1987 Labour Trilogy cases that freedom of association in Section 2(d) of the Charter doesn’t guarantee a right to strike. That line of authority has never been overturned by the Supreme Court. Therefore, until the SCC overturns itself, it is inappropriate for a lower court to issue a decision that is contrary to SCC precedent.”
Complaints also filed with the International Labour Organization (ILO)
In 2008, NUPGE filed a complaint with the United Nation’s International Labour Organization (ILO) against Bills 5 and 6. A complaint was also filed by the SFL on behalf of more than a dozen other unions in the province.
In March 2009, the ILO ruled on both complaints, issuing a stinging rebuke to the government of Saskatchewan over the legislation. It found Bills 5 and 6 in violation of Canada's international law commitments under ILO Convention No. 87 – Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize which Canada and all provincial governments have ratified. The ILO directed the province to go back to the drawing board and rewrite the laws in full consultation and cooperation with workers and labour groups affected.
More information:
SFL, SGEU and others unions make an application to Supreme Court of Canada
Saskatchewan essential services legislation deemed unconstitutional
Saskatchewan government holds up ILO hearings on labour laws
Saskatchewan and Ottawa must act on ILO ruling
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE