June 4, 2008

Alberta government quickly passes controversial changes to labour laws

Richard Gilbert

staff writer

The Alberta legislature ended the spring session early on June 5 with the passage of controversial changes to the province’s labour laws.

The Alberta government introduced Bill 26 or the Labour Relations Amendment Act 2008 in the afternoon on June 2. After more than eight straight hours of debate, Bill 26 passed at around 3:15 am on June 5.

The new bill requires employees in the construction sector to have worked for an employer for 30 days before participating in a union certification vote.

It also contains other provisions.

Even if a union earns the right to certify, employees will have 90 days to reconsider their decision to join the union.

The government designed the new provisions to prevent salting — planting unionized workers on a construction site before a certification vote — as a union organizing tactic in the construction sector. Some contractors argue salting is widespread, while the unions maintain that the practice is rare.

The pace at which the legislation was passed also has opposition members saying the government rammed through the bill without proper consultation and debate.

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