This fall, a bill is being introduced to put a federal ban on replacement workers and is required by the NDP for their continued support of the Liberal minority government.. Jagmeet Singh .“We’re talking to both sides with consultations,” Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan told reporters. .“We had them together. It was two days. I sat in them. We had even the placement of seats, you know, we didn’t have unions on one side and employers on the other. Everybody sat around interspersed and it was messy.”.“It was messy, you know,” said O’Regan. .“How are we going to get through this together? But everybody’s committed to doing it.”.“What do you expect the impact of that will be?” asked a reporter. .“We’re going through that, trying to figure it out,” replied O’Regan..The Liberal Party in its September 1, 2021, campaign platform Forward For Everyone promised “legislation to prohibit the use of replacement workers, ‘scabs,’ when a union employer in a federally regulated industry has locked out employees.” .O’Regan, last October 19, launched a year-long review of a draft bill. .It will be introduced in Parliament after Labour Day, said O’Regan..“What we agreed to with the NDP was by the end of the year and that’s what we’ll stick to,” said O’Regan. .“We’ve got to get it right. We’ve got to. This is one of the most monumental changes to collective bargaining in Canadian labour history. It’s a big deal, so I want to get it right.”.“You are looking at passing the bill next year?” asked a reporter. .“Yes, that would be the idea,” replied O’Regan..“We agreed to introduce legislation by the end of the year,” said O’Regan. . TradesCourtesy the fabricator.com .“We’ll definitely be doing that. You want people focused at the table and that was the whole idea behind replacement worker legislation. You want people focused at the table and you want people negotiating.”.“In a G7 country, we have an economy to run,” said O’Regan. .O’Regan added cabinet must “do everything we can” to avoid work disruptions. .“Supply chains can’t afford stoppages,” said O’Regan..Any replacement worker ban would apply to Crown corporations and private sector employees under the Canada Labour Code, including airlines, banks, grain mills, marine shippers, railways, and telecom companies. .Some 900,000 Canadians work in the sector, according to Blacklock’s Reporter..New Democrat MPs in private bills have proposed $10,000 a day fines for employers that hired replacement workers in case of strike or lockout. .“This is something that is a longstanding principle of New Democrats,” Party leader Jagmeet Singh earlier told reporters..“We would make sure that passes,” said Singh. .“We would want to see that happen. That is a priority and it’s long been a priority for us.”
