What Management Cannot Do During the Course
of an Organizing Drive
You may find that the employer or others in management may try
to influence your legally protected right to join a union through
fear, coercion, and intimidation. Under Canadian law employers
are prohibited from interfering with your right to select a union
as your “collective bargaining representative.” Among
the things that they are NOT permitted to do are:
They cannot promise any benefits to employees to stay out
of the union.
They cannot threaten the loss of jobs, income, benefits, or
any other compensation you are now receiving if you do support
the union.
They cannot threaten to fire you, or fire you because you
support the union.
They cannot attend union meetings.
They cannot treat you differently because they think you are
supporting the union.
They cannot transfer you because you are involved with the
union.
They cannot take work away from you because you are supporting
the union.
They cannot ask you about your opinion of the union.
They cannot ask you whether you are supporting the union.
They cannot ask you how you would vote if there were an election.
They cannot ask you at the time you are hired whether or not
you belong to a union.
They cannot help you withdraw from union membership.
They cannot tell you there will be a strike.
They cannot tell you they will not deal with the union.
Unfair Labour Practices
If your employer uses threats or intimidation of any kind to
influence your decision, the union will have the right to file
unfair labour practices with the appropriate labour relations
board.
Below are the relevant excerpts from Canadian Codes and/or Acts,
prohibiting employers from intimidating employees.
The Canadian Labour Code: “No employer or person acting on behalf of an employer
shall refuse to employ or to continue to employ or suspend, transfer,
lay off or otherwise discriminate against any person with respect
to employment, pay or any other term or condition of employment
or intimidate, threaten or otherwise discipline any person because
the person…is or proposes to become, or seeks to induce
any other person to become, a member, officer or representative
of a trade union or participates in the promotion, formation or
administration of a trade union.”
Alberta Labour Relations Act: “An employer is prohibited from discriminating against
any person in regard to employment on the grounds that the person
(1) is a union member or has applied for membership.”
British Columbia Labour Code: “An employer or person acting on behalf of an employer
shall not (a) discharge, suspend, transfer, layoff or otherwise
discipline an employee, refuse to employ or to continue to employ
a person or discriminate against a person in regard to employment
or a condition of employment because the person:
is or proposes to become or seeks to induce another person
to become a member or officer of a trade union, or
participates in the promotion, formation or administration
of a trade union
Manitoba Labour Relations Act: “Every employer and every person acting on behalf of
an employer who refuses to employ, or who discharges from employment,
or who refuses to continue to employ, or who discriminates in
regard to employment against, any person who
was or is a member of a union; or
has participated, or is participating in union activities;
or
was or is involved in organizing a union…
unless he satisfies the board that he did not refuse to employ
or discharge from employment or refuse to continue to employ or
discriminate in regard to employment against the person because
of any of the reasons set out in clauses (a) to (h), commits an
unfair labour practice.”
Newfoundland Labour Relations Act: “An employer and a person acting on behalf of an employer
shall not seek by intimidation, threat of dismissal or other kind
of threat, or by the imposition of a monetary or other penalty
or by other means to compel a person to refrain from becoming
or to stop being a member, officer or representative of a trade
union.”
New Brunswick Industrial Relations Act: “No employer or organization, and no person acting on
behalf of an employer or an employers' organization, shall seek
by intimidation, by dismissal, by threat of dismissal, or by any
other kind of threat, or by the imposition of a pecuniary or other
penalty, or by a promise, or by a wage increase, or by altering
any other term or condition of employment, or by any other means,
to compel or to induce an employee to refrain from becoming, or
to cease to be, a member or officer or representative of a trade
union or council of trade unions, or to deprive an employee of
his rights under this Act, and no other person shall seek by intimidation
or coercion to compel or induce an employee to become or refrain
from becoming or to cease to be a member or officer of a trade
union or council of trade unions or to deprive an employee of
his rights under this Act.”
Nova Scotia Trade Union Act: “No employer and no person acting on behalf of an employer
shall
refuse to employ or to continue to employ any person or
otherwise discriminate against any person in regard to employment
or any term or condition of employment, because the person
is or was a member of a trade union.”
Ontario Labour Relations Act: “No employer or employers’ organization and no
person acting on behalf of an employer or an employers’
organization shall participate in or interfere with the formation,
selection or administration of a trade union or the representation
of employees by a trade union or contribute financial or other
support to a trade union, but nothing in this section shall be
deemed to deprive an employer of the employer’s freedom
to express views so long as the employer does not use coercion,
intimidation, threats, promises or undue influence.
No employer, employers’ organization or person acting
on behalf of an employer or an employers’ organization,
shall refuse to employ or to continue to employ a person,
or discriminate against a person in regard to employment or
any term or condition of employment because the person was or
is a member of a trade union or was or is exercising any other
rights under this Act;
shall impose any condition in a contract of employment
or propose the imposition of any condition in a contract of
employment that seeks to restrain an employee or a person seeking
employment from becoming a member of a trade union or exercising
any other rights under this Act; or
shall seek by threat or dismissal, or by any other kind
of threat, or by the imposition of a pecuniary or other penalty,
or by any other means to compel an employee to become or refrain
from becoming or to continue to be or to cease to be a member
or officer or representative of a trade union or cease to exercise
any other rights under this Act.”
Prince Edward Island Labour Act: “No employer, employers’ organization or an agent
of any other person acting on behalf of an employer or employers’
organization shall
interfere with, restrain or coerce an employee in the exercise
of any right conferred by the Act.”
Québec Labour Code: “No employer, or person acting for an employer or an
association of employers, shall in any manner seek to dominate
hinder or finance the formation or the activities of any association
of employees, or to participate therein.
No person shall use intimidation or threats to induce anyone
to become, refrain from becoming or cease to be a member of an
association of employees or an employers’ association.”
Saskatchewan Trade Union Act:
“It shall be an unfair labour practice for an employer,
employer’s agent or any other person acting on behalf of
the employer…
b. to discriminate or interfere with the formation or administration
of any labour organization or contribute financial or other
support to it… e. to discriminate in regard to hiring or tenure of employment
or any term or condition of employment or to use coercion or
intimidation of any kind, including discharge or suspension
or threat of discharge or suspension of any employee, with a
view to encouraging or discouraging membership in or activity
in or for or selection of a labour organization or participation
of any kind in a proceeding under this Act… f. to require as a condition of employment that any person
shall abstain from joining or assisting or being active in any
trade union of from exercising any right provided by this Act,
except as permitted by this Act; g. to interfere in the selection of a trade union as
a representative of employees for the purpose of bargaining
collectively; h.to maintain a system of industrial espionage or to
employ or direct any person to spy upon a member of proceedings
of a labour organization of the officers thereof or the exercise
by any employee of any right provided by this Act; i. to threaten to shut down or to threaten to move a
plant, business or enterprise or any other part of a plant,
business or enterprise in the course of a labour-management
dispute.”
