The House of Commons gave a unanimous 318-0 vote to a bill banning replacement workers in the federally-regulated private sector, according to Blacklock’s Reporter. “This is a big deal,” said Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan in a speech in the House of Commons. “This is history.”With the unanimous vote, O’Regan said it “sends a strong signal about the strength of the labour movement.”Bill C-58 would restrict federally-regulated private sector employers from using replacement workers in strikes or lockouts under threat of $100,000 per day fines. Bill C-58 was introduced in the House of Commons in November. It will move to hearings at the House of Commons Human Resources Committee. Since it will likely pass, he said this is where the rubber meets the road. “This is a vote for workers in this country,” he said. “Unionized workers have been looking for this legislation for as long as there has been a labour movement in this country.” Conservative MPs voted for second reading with little comment. Bloc Quebecois MPs noted cabinet included a clause stating Bill C-58 will not take effect until 18 months after Parliament passes it into law. “Eighteen months is a long time,” said Bloc Quebecois MP Luc Desilets (Riviere-des-Mille-Iles, QC). “By then, we may well have had two more minority governments.”Bloc Quebecois MP Louise Chabot (Therese-De Blainville, QC) said at a House of Commons Human Resources Committee meeting on February 5 the 18-month clause was “a huge risk.” To date, cabinet has not released any timetable to have it clear House of Commons and Senate committees. “There is a risk because of this 18-month delay and because of the whole legislative process that actually this bill won’t become law,” said Chabot.“Do you personally commit to making this a priority and speeding up the process?”O’Regan admitted he understood what Chabot was asking. However, he said the Canadian government needed time. “Experts need time,” he said. With tabling and passing Bill C-58, she said they are two different concepts. “That’s what the unions want,” she said. “They want this to go faster.”The Liberals said in April it would be introducing a bill to put a federal ban on replacement workers and was required by the NDP for the continued support of the government. READ MORE: Liberals putting a federal ban on replacement workers to keep NDP support“We’re talking to both sides with consultations,” said O’Regan. “We had them together.”
