While hardly a
year goes by without important developments occurring in the Canadian labour
movement, some years carry with them developments so profound as to have
permanently reshaped the history of the labour movement. Listed below are some
of the events that brought those very developments.
1900
Conciliation Act. This marks the first legal framework
for federal government intervention in labour disputes. The Act both established the Department
of Labour and empowered the government to investigate any dispute and meet with
the parties. The process established was non-binding and, in general, proved to be ineffective.
1907
Industrial Disputes Investigations Act is enacted. In order to respond
to a series of acrimonious strikes, the IDIA established tripartite
conciliation boards that were mandatory for public utilities. These conciliation boards were also available to other sectors, but were voluntary. Industrial action was prohibited while a board
investigation was ongoing. The framework was unable to gain legitimacy among employer and
unions.
1919
The International Labour Organization (ILO) is founded.
Formed as part of the League of Nations, the ILO - an international tripartite organization
(jointly run by employers, unions and states) - had a mandate to promote
international labour standards.
Also occurring in 1919 was the Winnipeg General
Strike. Soldiers facing unemployment, poverty and poor economic conditions upon their return home from WWI led to a great deal of worker unrest and militancy across Canada.
General strikes were held in many cities and
culminated in the Winnipeg General Strike. Police and military were used to put down the strikes with
violent force.
1930's
The Great Depression leads to substantial labour unrest.
Workers’ movements, such as the Workers’ Unity League, broaden to include the
unemployed.
1935
In the U.S., the Wagner Act is enacted. Officially titled the National
Labor Relations Act, it was a response in the U.S. to worker unrest due to the
Depression. It established the modern labour relations legal framework, often
called“Wagnerism”, by formalizing certification, restricting employer
interference and creating the National Labor Relations Board.
1944
Occurrence of Privy Council Order 1003, which was a wartime federal act that
loosely duplicated the U.S. Wagner Act, establishing a modern labour
relations regime for Canada. Following the war it was replaced by the federal Industrial
Relations and Disputes Investigation Act in 1948. Provinces later established
their own, largely parallel, legislation.
1945
Windsor Ford Plant Strike. A 99-day strike settled
by an arbitration decision by Justice Ivan C. Rand, which created the
“Rand Formula”, where stipulates that since all workers benefit from unions, union dues are to be automatically deducted from all workers’
paycheques to support union representation.
1950's
The 1950's saw rapid expansion of trade unions in the
private sector. Under the construct of Wagnerism, private sector unionism
expanded and grew as the economy prospered. Much of the organizing too place in
industrial sectors. Many goups of workers were excluded from organizing, including minorities and women.
1965
National Postal Workers Strike occurs. This was an illegal strike of
all postal workers in Canada that ultimately led to legal recognition of trade unions and of the
right to strike in the public sector. These new recognitions were officially entrenched in 1967. The strikers received great public support and won a large victory, receiving wage increases and much improved working conditions.
1975
In 1975, Prime Minister Trudeau brought in his Anti-Inflation Program. In response to a
crisis of inflation, this policy of the federal Liberal government suspended free
collective bargaining for all workers in Canada, established an Anti-Inflation
Board to rollback wage increases that were found to be too high, and restricted future
wage increases. The Anti-Inflation Program is generally considered to be the first act in a new period of
anti-union policies by government and marked the beginning of “permanent exceptionalism”.
1978
The National
Postal Worker Strike happens. This strike was ended by a government back-to-work order. Union President J.C. Parrot defies the back-to-work
order, leading to his imprisonment. J.C. Parrot's imprisonment is the first such jailing since the Wagnerism was introduced.
1982
The "6 and 5” Program brought in by the federal Liberals. It is a second anti-inflation
program launched by the Trudeau government and imposed wage settlements (of 6% and
5%) on federal public sector unions. Provincial governments followed with their
own similar impositions.
1999
The Delisle decision is handed down. Delisle is a Supreme Court decision ruling that
RCMP officers did not have a Charter protected right to organize a union.
2001
Dunmore decision. Dunmore is a decision where the Supreme Court
found that governments have a “positive obligation” to protect the right to
organize for farmworkers and other vulnerable groups. This was the first
indication from the courts that the Charter
might protect the right to organize[1].
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