On August 16, federal Minister of Jobs and Families Patty Hajdu made it clear that she cares about neither when she moved to force Air Canada flight attendants into binding arbitration, mere hours after the strike began.
Once again relying on an anti-labour interpretation of Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to force striking employees back to work, the federal government continues to display a flagrant disdain for the fundamental rights of workers by caving to corporate interests and effectively stripping the collective bargaining process of its power.
“This is the Government of Canada telling all Canadians that corporate profits come first, that unpaid work is acceptable, and that workers have no right to a living wage” said Mark Weber, National President of the Customs and Immigration Union. “This is the government telling Canadians that their Charter rights can and will be ignored — not unlike what we’re seeing south of the border”.
Actions that cannot be overlooked
The current Liberal government was elected on the promise of building a strong Canada and of standing up for Canadians against existential threats from our southern neighbours, yet their actions mirror those of a U.S. administration that has moved swiftly to roll back the rights of its citizens and do away with the labour rights of American workers.
While CIU will continue to work with the government whenever necessary to improve our members’ working conditions and address critical border security matters, these latest events cannot be overlooked.
“The mask is off — there is no doubt that we have a government that is openly hostile to workers” declared Weber. “Federal public service workers, and indeed all workers, must take note of the Air Canada debacle: We cannot ignore who we’re dealing with. We must prepare for our own rounds of bargaining and be ready to demonstrate what the full force of organized labour can accomplish.”
Solidarity with flight attendants
CIU urges all members to show their support for striking Air Canada flight attendants in whatever way possible. Attend a picket outside of your work hours, honk your horn, buy a flight attendant a coffee — let’s show the government that their attempt at trampling our rights and strong-arming workers into unfair contracts will not be accepted.
For more information on the situation affecting Air Canada flight attendants, please visit cupe.ca and unfaircanada.com.
