Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
My name is Michael Atkinson. As the president of the Canadian Construction Association, I hold the chief staff position with the organization. With me is Jeff Morrison, who is the director of government relations and public affairs with the organization.
We represent the non-residential construction industry. Our members typically build everything except single-family dwellings. We have approximately 20,000 individual members right across Canada, from coast to coast to coast.
While labour relations in the construction industry are generally regulated by provincial legislation, the Canada Labour Code does have application to construction workers in the territories, and it often establishes a general precedent for provincial legislation. As a result, our industry is extremely concerned with the proposal to introduce amendments to the code that would introduce an outright ban on the use of replacement workers.
Our industry is currently enjoying unprecedented demand in many regions and sectors, especially in Alberta, in British Columbia, and in the territories. Many of these projects are related to oil and gas development and much needed public infrastructure renewal, as well as pipeline projects. This is especially true in Canada's north.
The last time amendments of this sort were seriously considered, there was a genuine attempt to consult with all interested parties, including the general public. The task force headed by Andrew Sims did not accept a complete and outright ban on replacement workers, but instead introduced a proposal that would ban the use of replacement workers where their use was intended to undermine a union's legitimate role. The majority of the members of that task force felt a complete ban would tip the balance too far to one side.
The objective of this bill is simply to deny the right of employers to continue to carry on business during a strike or lockout. In addition, it denies the ability of an employee in a bargaining unit on strike to cross the picket line and return to work in order to make a living. In addition, while the employer cannot hire replacement workers, the striking workers are free to work elsewhere. Such an unbalanced situation does not foster a climate of prudent, responsible collective bargaining. In a balanced setting, a union's right to strike must be countered to some extent by the ability of the employer to keep operating during a labour dispute.
I am going to ask Mr. Morrison to make a couple of comments. Then I'll be back with some concluding remarks.