Finance committee  One minute left? I’m going to go right to the conclusion. Let’s go back to Judge LeBel of the Supreme Court. In his view, the fundamental reason to rule on the constitutionality of the amounts collected and accounted for was to maintain a connection in the act between the needs

Finance committee  —and to require the government at least to check in advance with the Supreme Court—

Finance committee  May I add something else?

Finance committee  Six minutes goes by fast!

Finance committee  Mr. Chairman, committee members, on behalf of the Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec, I thank you for allowing us to express our opinion, in particular on Part 24 of this bill. With respect to the employment insurance account, I would say, from the outset tha

Human Resources committee  When workers deem a situation to be dangerous, under the provisions of the Act respecting Occupational Health and Safety, they have a right to refuse unsafe work, but that right does not last for ever. The Commission de la santé et de la sécurité du travail du Québec obviously ca

Human Resources committee  I did not understand that term. Oh, you were talking about a wildcat strike. We are obviously making our views known because we think this is a worthwhile bill. It fits within the framework of current legislation. This is about labour disputes that are part and parcel of the cur

Human Resources committee  More than a year.

Human Resources committee  We have two comments in that regard. First of all, labour disputes should be included in the exceptions. We find it incomprehensible that it would not be included among the exceptions. Also, if that exception were to be introduced into the Act right away or tomorrow, we would no

Human Resources committee  Did you get that? Personally, I had trouble following the translation. In any case, it is clear to us that EI benefits paid to workers who have lost their jobs are intended, first and foremost, to allow them to avoid going bankrupt. As we have often said, it is a highly productiv

Human Resources committee  At the Journal de Montréal, the lockout started over a year ago. I believe it is the only lengthy labour dispute at this time. Job losses are bound to follow.

Human Resources committee  Employment Insurance benefits are paid out of the contributions to the EI fund made by workers and employers. The government does not put any money into that fund. The benefits applied for under the EI program are paid for out of employer and worker contributions. The costs are c

Human Resources committee  With respect to your first question, I would say that during a strike or lockout, there is no longer any advantage. Nothing has changed, and everything is still the same. The employer no longer has any costs to defray. The costs for an employer are connected to the payroll. Durin

Human Resources committee  I do not see what role that could play. I have been representing workers for more than 35 years now. I do not know of any worker who wants to go on strike; it is the ultimate step under our system of bargaining. It is time that the legislation was brought up to date. Strikes and

Human Resources committee  I do not know whether Mr. Pothier wants to add something.