Madam Speaker, I am pleased to have this opportunity to participate in today's debate on Bill C-233.
I read my hon. colleague's bill with some interest and I am surprised by the lack of balance in the bill. I know my colleague tries very hard to achieve good solutions. However, it puzzles me that the member opposite has proposed such a rigid and mechanical approach to labour relations, especially at a time when rapid economic change both in Canada and around the world requires imaginative responses to difficult problems.
Free and fair collective bargaining is a cornerstone of industrial relations in Canada. Members will ask is the system perfect. My answer would be no, but what system is?
Our history and experience have demonstrated that collective bargaining has served the interests of labour and management well and, by extension, it has served the interests of Canadians well. The best solution in any dispute is the one arrived at by the parties themselves in the give and take process of collective bargaining. That is where this government feels that the responsibility should rightfully remain.
We pride ourselves as a free and democratic society and in such as society it is not the government's job to intervene and impose solutions on people. However, there are times when the rights and freedoms of different groups must be weighed against the interests of the nation and the well-being of its citizens as a whole.
No one disagrees with that but in labour relations in the federal jurisdictions we already possess the tools required to ensure that a balance exists between the national interest and the rights of the parties involved in a labour dispute.
My hon. colleague across the way is nodding and giving me a thumbs up.
Let me explain what I mean. Right now, if there is a labour dispute at a port, part I of the Canada Labour Code gives the minister and the government a variety of tools to help the parties. The goal is to assist the parties in their negotiations so that an agreement can be reached and a contract signed.
First, a conciliation officer is made available to assist the parties in their negotiations. Should the parties fail to reach agreement at this stage of the process further assistance can be rendered by a conciliation commissioner if deemed appropriate. At any time a mediator can be appointed to assist in the resolution of issues in dispute.
As members can see, there is no shortage of assistance available to help the parties reach a settlement.
The preamble to the Canada Labour Code states:
—Canadian workers, trade unions and employers recognize and support freedom of association and free collective bargaining as the basis of effective industrial relations for the determination of good working conditions and sound labour-management relations.
It means that in Canada we recognize that labour unions have made lives better for millions of their members. It means that labour unions have an important role to play in the economy. They also have an important role to play as a safeguard for workers rights.
When the Sims task force looked at part I of the code, it concluded that “free collective bargaining continues to serve our social and economic needs”.
In other words, the benefits of free collective bargaining usually outweigh the inconvenience caused by any strikes. When I say usually, I mean there will always be times when a strike causes too much damage for the economy. I think this is what the member for Wetaskiwin had in mind when he drafted his bill. His party mainly represents rural ridings where agricultural interests are dominant and important. If the ports are closed, produce does not head for its destinations abroad.
Ports play a crucial role in the distribution of goods into and out of this country, and a lengthy work stoppage cannot only create economic hardship but also it can jeopardize the country's reputation as a reliable trading partner in the international scene.
I am not going to argue this point, particularly in light of the legislation interventions which have been made in the past. There are times when the national interest demands an end to work stoppage and back to work legislation becomes an unfortunate necessity. That legislation normally includes a number of provisions, including a process to resolve the issues in dispute.
Final offer arbitration is one of the many mechanisms which may be chosen. Final offer arbitration can be a useful tool if used to settle a single, definitive issue such as the amount of a wage increase. But the implementation of this process across a broad range of issues is not appropriate.
The key weakness of final offer arbitration is that the arbitrator picks one side's position on all issues in its entirety over the other side. Suppose you have a labour dispute where the union wants an end to outsourcing, 50 cents more an hour and a dental plan. Management offers 25 cents, no dental plan and no end to outsourcing.
Some feel that final offer arbitration will encourage compromise, but it could well do the reverse. If you know that final offer arbitration will force someone to win everything and someone to lose everything, and if you know that final offer arbitration is based on final offers, you have a very good reason to stand pat and to take your chances.
Moreover, with final offer arbitration you cannot split the difference, 35 cents more an hour, keep the dental plan but allow management to continue outsourcing. That may be the best solution but with this process it can never happen. Either one side gets everything it wants or the other side does. End of argument. The more complicated the dispute, the worse it gets.
How, for example, would you use final offer arbitration to solve disputes in a court over manning provisions, rules of dispatch, grievance procedures or overtime? When you try to use final offer arbitration for complicated labour disputes, inevitably one side is left very bitter, and this bitterness keeps on poisoning the workplace after. It is very serious.
Instead of the sense of satisfaction that comes from settling differences through collective bargaining, you may instead have a legacy of simmering anger that manifests itself down the road.
There are better solutions. Bill C-19 currently before this House modernizes part 1 of the Canada Labour Code and improves the collective bargaining process for federally regulated industries. It balances the rights and the responsibilities of employers, unions and employees and it reflects Canada's changing labour relations environment. It will improve flexibility and encourage settlement of disputes.
I see my hon. colleague saying “well”, but perhaps that is a move forward and I feel that is progress too.
We have tried to strike a balance and I do not feel that Bill C-233 advances our interest at all. Instead of seeking a balance, it eliminates the balance completely. I urge all members of this House to vote against Bill C-233.