Federal government eyeing new reforms to help precarious workers

Thestar.com
August 30, 2018
Sara Mojtehedzadeh

The federal government is considering new protections for precarious workers in federally-regulated sectors like airlines, trucking, and banks --after the results of a 10-month consultation found that labour laws have not kept pace with “the realities of the 21st century workplace.”

Stronger scheduling rights and equal pay for equal work provisions are amongst the updates to the Canada Labour Code under consideration to make sure workplaces are “safe and fair,” Employment Minister Patty Hajdu told the Star, adding that legislation would be tabled in the next parliamentary session.

“My objective and the Prime Minister’s objective in putting this in my mandate was ensuring that there are those basic standards in place that protect those most vulnerable in federally regulated sectors,” she said.

The results of the 10-month government consultation released Thursday also found strong support for a federally-mandated minimum wage, with 76 per cent of the 3,100 respondents to an online nonrepresentative survey in favour.

Some 45 per cent said the minimum wage should be set at $15 an hour and 31 per cent said it should be higher.

“There’s nothing that’s off the table right now,” Hajdu said.

Most workers are governed by provincial labour laws, but around 900,000 employees across Canada work in sectors that are governed by federal labour laws. Currently, workers in federally-regulated sectors are entitled to the minimum wage set in their respective provinces, which in Ontario is $14 an hour. Premier Doug Ford has said he will not introduce an increase to $15 in 2019 as was planned by the previous Liberal government.

The federal consultation involved labour groups, employers, and academic experts who “spoke about both the challenges and opportunities associated with competitive global markets, the widespread use of digital technologies, and the shift away from traditional employment,” the report said.

It also identified problems such as contract-flipping in federal sectors like transportation. That refers to employers awarding contracts to different service providers every few years, forcing workers to reapply for their jobs, often losing any wage increases and benefits earned under their previous employer.

Dan Janssen, a baggage handler at Pearson International Airport and the vice-president of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 2323, which represents airport workers, said updates to federal labour laws were urgently needed.

“You come across people who have been there for 15 to 20 years who are making just over minimum wage or minimum wage. They enjoy the job but because of contract flipping unfortunately the pay hasn’t kept up,” he said. “We had people making $22 an hour who got offered jobs at $13.”

“It’s been going for so long and we’ve been asking for a fix for so long,” he added.

The report released Thursday cited concern amongst some employers that federal labour standards were “too rigid” and should be “more flexible to allow employers to operate nimbly, remain competitive and adapt to industry-specific realities.”

Hajdu said she would seek a “balanced” approach to reforms and wanted to “work with progressive employers who understand that when people have good work conditions in fact it’s an asset to employers.”

“Many employers in the federally regulated sectors already know that.”

In 2006, an extensive report to the federal government by labour law expert Harry Arthurs noted “workers in the federal jurisdiction tend to be higher paid and enjoy better overall working conditions.”

But it also warned of the rise of part-time and temporary work in some sectors, and its impact on groups like women and new Canadians in particular. The report made numerous proposals to better protect such workers, including equal pay for part-time and temp workers doing the same job as full-time, permanent employees, the establishment of a federal minimum wage, exploring the creation of a federal “benefits bank” for workers with no access to benefits, and making temporary employment agencies and the companies who use them jointly liable for unpaid wages.

“It landed with a literal thud --there wasn’t interest by the Conservative government at all,” Hajdu said.

“I think we absolutely have a leadership role to play, and so do employers who are federally regulated.”