Mr. Speaker, you realize that the official opposition is very pleased to address a bill that has taken a lot of our time, but deservedly so, as it is an important bill. The idea is to establish a balance in our society, since Bill C-66 deals with the whole issue of labour relations.
The amendment that we propose, and which we believe will get the government's support, is based on common sense.
If we were to ask parliamentarians why, in 1997, flour mills still come under federal jurisdiction, we would probably have a hard time getting a rational explanation.
This amendment was suggested to us by a witness who is very knowledgable and very concerned about the situation of flour mills. I am referring of course to Ogilvie Mills Ltd., which is unionized under the CSN. I want to make things very clear and say that, with this amendment, we are proposing that flour mills be deemed to come under provincial jurisdiction. In this regard, I would like to quote a short excerpt from a submission which is very forceful, like anything done by the CSN, and which explains why we should, as parliamentarians, as opposition and government members, accept such an argument.
I am quoting workers from Ogilvie Mills, who made the following statement before the parliamentary committee: "Most people who get involved in our labour relations for the first time are surprised to find out that mill workers come under the Canada Labour Code. As for us, after having been unionized for over 30 years, we are still wondering about this situation".
They do have a point. Why is that? It is because, before modern laws governing labour relations come into effect, the federal government used its declaratory power. We know this is not a rare occurrence. Indeed, in the past, the federal government used its declaratory power a number of times to appropriate jurisdictions, which it claimed to be of national interest. So, the federal government used its declaratory power to rule that flour mills came under its jurisdiction. "Such an initiative may have been justified in an era of world conflicts and protectionism", said the witness, "but not today. Especially since the Americans have gained control over most of this production, especially since the Crow's Nest rate was abolished and since it is easier to move wheat over the U.S. border".
The argument no longer holds; just like beer production-can a more eloquent example be ever found?-flour production should fall under provincial jurisdiction. Then, the witness added something that ought to make the government happy, by saying: "No difficult constitutional amendments would be needed; the federal government only has to modify the Labour Code or its wheat legislation to remove any reference to flour mills".
That is exactly what our amendment proposes, and I hope that the parliamentary secretary would nod to show us that he intends to accept our reasoning. I still want to use the time I have left to remind the House how important this amendment is and that we owe it to the Ogilvie employees. These workers, as you know, were involved in an extremely long labour dispute, which brings me to the connection I want to make between the two issues.
These Ogilvie employees were the ones who really made us aware of the need to have extremely clear and unequivocal provisions within the Labour Code concerning replacement workers, as my colleague, the hon. member for Mercier, could confirm. These workers were on strike for quite a while and some violent incidents occurred, which were directly related to the lack of protection and the banning of replacement workers.
There is no longer any argument, any reason for the mill workers to still be subject to the Canada Labour Code. As parliamentarians, we could very easily pass this amendment, insert it in Bill C-66 and ensure that the flour mills fall under provincial jurisdiction. I think that would make things easier for everyone involved.
It must be pointed out that we do not suggest it is irrelevant to afford some protection to a number of workers in the air transportation industry, in banking and in other sectors under federal jurisdiction. Besides, we all know that the Canada Labour Code applies to 10 per cent of the Canadian workforce only.
We agree that when the federal government position is based on clear and explicit jurisdictions, and when the intent of the 33 Fathers of Confederation is clear, there should be a clear protection. But in the case of the flour mills, I think we should accept the request of workers and pass our amendment to the effect that they should be under provincial jurisdiction.
This is the intent of our amendment, and I am confident that the parliamentary secretary to the labour minister will accept our arguments. If not, I certainly hope he will take the floor and explain why. He tends to keep nodding, but you know that silence gives consent.