Effect given to the recommendations of the committee and the Governing Body - Report No 378, June 2016

Case No 3057 (Canada) - Complaint date: 04-FEB-14 - Closed

Effect given to the recommendations of the committee and the Governing Body

1. 23. The Committee last examined this case at its March 2015 meeting [see 374th Report, paras 184–219]. On that occasion, the Committee made the following recommendations:
   • (a) The Committee expects that in the future the Government will engage, at an early stage of the process, in full and frank consultations with the relevant workers’ and employers’ organizations on any questions or proposed legislation affecting trade union rights so as to permit the attainment of mutually acceptable solutions.
   • (b) Noting that the Public Sector Services Continuation Act (Bill 45) is not currently in force and is the subject of domestic litigation, the Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of the outcome of the judicial proceedings and expects that its conclusions above will be taken into account within the framework of the review Bill 45.
2. 24. By a communication dated 16 July 2015, the Government of Canada transmits the following observations of the Government of Alberta.
   • – On 30 January 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in Saskatchewan Federation of Labour v. Saskatchewan (SFL decision) concerning the Government of Saskatchewan’s “essential services” labour legislation for the public sector. The Court ruled that the right to strike, when collective bargaining reaches an impasse, is constitutionally protected under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms because such a right is necessary for meaningful collective bargaining. The Court struck down Saskatchewan essential services legislation as unconstitutional because it restricted the right to strike more than necessary to ensure provision of essential services.
   • – On 30 March 2015, the Government of Alberta repealed the Public Sector Services Continuation Act with Bill 24, the Public Sector Services Continuation Repeal Act.
   • – Additionally, the domestic litigation concerning the Public Sector Services Continuation Act concluded when the Government of Alberta did not oppose a court order that declared section 70 of the Public Service Employee Relations Act and sections 96(1)(b) and (c) of the Labour Relations Code (the strike prohibitions at issue in this case) as unconstitutional and invalid. The court order was signed on 31 March 2015 and suspended the declaration of invalidity for one year to allow time for the Government of Alberta to introduce replacement legislation.
3. 25. The Government of Canada concludes that with the repeal of Bill 45, Public Sector Services Continuation Act on 30 March 2015, all outstanding legal proceedings related to this piece of legislation have concluded.
4. 26. The Committee takes notes of this information with interest.