Mr. Speaker, the subject under discussion is one very close to my heart. The replacement worker question is one that has been long debated in our society and one that has been solved in Quebec and in British Columbia. Unfortunately, in Ontario the legislation was repealed.
My major criticism of Bill C-66 is its lack of real anti-strikebreaker clauses. The minister tells us that the Sims commission was unable to reach a consensus, but there has never been a consensus anywhere on anti-scab legislation. The government must have the courage to table a bill on replacement workers. I shall come back to this later. Professor Rodrigue Blouin tabled a minority report in which he comes out clearly against replacement workers and in favour of anti-scab legislation.
The minister tells us that there was no consensus, and that is true-there never will be. He must get moving and have the courage to table a true anti-scab bill. I believe that a consensus is developing in this House. Last year, we voted on an anti-scab bill and it was very narrowly defeated. Some Liberal members even voted in favour of this bill, which had been introduced by a member of the Bloc Quebecois.
The absence of anti-scab provisions proves that the Liberal Party of Canada, that this government has moved to the right. This government listens more and more to employers and less and less to the labour movement, the unions and the workers.
The Bloc Quebecois is the only party that truly defends the interests of the workers. It is the only party that voted against back- to-work legislation for railway workers. Of course the Reform Party is against anti-scab provisions. This party represents the right, the extreme right of Canada.
The bill prohibits the employer from introducing practices aimed at undermining the ability of a union that is on strike or locked out to represent its members. In what cases will these provisions apply? We do not know. We can give an example. If an employer refuses to bargain while using scabs, the Canada Industrial Relations Board may prohibit the use of scabs.
Proving a case is very difficult. It must be done before the Canada Industrial Relations Board. It must be proven that it is an unfair practice. The notion of unfair practices will vary depending on the case and the circumstances. Furthermore, this practice must aim to undermine the ability of the union to represent its members. In what cases, in what circumstances? We do not know this either.
Anti-scab provisions, and this has been proven in Quebec and British Columbia, and in Ontario when it still had such provisions, contribute to labour peace and make for better labour relations. Their absence contributes to violence on the picket line. We have seen that wherever there are strikes and employers use strike breakers there is violence on the picket lines.
I saw it at the Ogilvie flour mills in Montreal, a few months ago, at Pratt and Whitney in Longueuil, at Westinghouse. There was confrontation between the company's permanent employees and the strike breakers from outside replacing them, confrontation that was brutal at times.
I am sensitive to this. I felt it important to introduce a bill, Bill C-338, to prevent the use of strike breakers. It is also meant to protect the employer in certain circumstances, and provides for maintaining essential services in a company.
A balance must be maintained between the parties, when negotiations are going on. Generally, the employer is in the better position, with its management rights, and workers and unions are not so well off. Anti strike breaking legislation restores the power relationships between the parties in negotiation.
In 1976, the Government of Quebec had the courage to introduce a bill, which came into force in 1977. As the member for Hochelaga-Maisonneuve has just pointed out, management opposition was fierce. Everywhere, everyone was expecting the worst. Nothing happened.
Quite the contrary, antiscab provisions in Quebec have contributed to shorten work disputes. There is less violence on picket lines and we have unprecedented labour peace. I believe it is also the case in British Columbia.
There were also such antiscab provisions in Ontario, but the new Conservative government, which represents the interests of employers and the right wing, has unfortunately repealed those provisions. I think this decision will be proven wrong in the future and there will be more conflict, more violence. Disputes will be harsher in the absence of antiscab provisions.
I said earlier that members of the Sims task force could not agree on antiscab provisions. Naturally, two members, Sims first, decided that it was not a good idea to introduce antiscab provisions. There was also Professor Rodrigue Blouin, from Laval University, who incidentally is one of the key experts in industrial relations in Quebec, in Canada and in North America.
He is one of the most well-known arbitrators in Quebec and says in his minority report: "I submit that the general principles underlying our system of collective labour relations are such that the presence of replacement workers during a legal strike or lockout is illegitimate". This is taken from page 138 of the report "Seeking a Balance", the review of part I of the Canada Labour Code.
He continues on page 154, saying: "The possibility of a strike or a lockout still remains the cornerstone of the collective bargaining system today. However, this economic confrontation is only possible between two clearly identified parties that are under the obligation to bargain in good faith. Therefore, as soon as a bargaining agent is certified, the employer of the workers that are being represented can no longer refuse to negotiate a collective agreement, but this does not necessarily mean that he has to reach one. After a certain period of formal negotiations, there may be, in the absence of a settlement, a break up in the collective dialogue and a setting off of an economic conflict. At no time during this process a third party may intervene, except in the cases specifically provided for by the legislation".
I submit to you that Professor Blouin is very well acquainted with the situation in Quebec, which has been a very positive experience. The results have been exceptional and no one in Quebec is thinking about repealing the legislation, not even the employers who had campaigned against it. We have some statistics showing that the industrial relations situation has greatly improved in Quebec.