2005 law violates international labour standards
Posted by National Union of Public and General Employees

Geneva (4 April 2007) - The International Labour Organization (ILO) has condemned the Quebec government of Premier Jean Charest for imposing a seven-year contract on 500,000 public sector workers.

The Geneva-based agency has called on the province to make sweeping changes to Bill 142 - legislation passed by the government in late 2005 - bringing it into conformity with international labour conventions adopted by Canada as a member of the ILO and the United Nations.

Specifically, the ILO found that Bill 142 (now known as Law 43) contravenes the right of all Canadian workers to bargain collectively and to withdraw their services if necessary during negotiations with employers.

The legislation forced most Quebec public sector workers to accept a 33-month wage freeze, followed by minor annual increases of 2% - substantially less than the projected annual rate of inflation.

"I cannot recall in Canadian history another instance when a single piece of legislation imposed a contract for such an extended period of time," James Clancy, president of the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) said at the time.

He estimated that the ultimate impact of the legislation would be to enforce a real wage decline (discounted for inflation) of about 6% over the full period.

The ILO says the violations are so profound that the province should take action immediately to modify the impact of the bill on public sector workers. The decision was made in response to a complaint on behalf of a long list of unions and labour groups.
The groups included the following:
• Association des substituts du Procureur général du Québec (ASPGQ)
• Syndicat de professionnelles et professionnels du gouvernement du Québec (SPGQ)
• Association des juristes de l'État (AJE)
• Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN)
• Fédération des infirmières et des infirmiers du Québec (FIIQ)
• Fédération autonome du Collégial (FAC)
• Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ)
• Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec (FTQ)
• Centrale des syndicats démocratiques (CSD)
• Syndicat de la fonction publique du Québec (SFPQ)
• Syndicat des professeurs de l'État du Québec (SPEQ)
• Association provinciale des enseignantes et enseignants du Québec (APEQ)

The FTQ, the CSN and the CSQ called a news conference to challenge Quebec's new minority government, elected last week, to join with opposition parties to implement the ILO's recommendations.

It was the second time in a year that the ILO has issued a decision condemning the actions of the Charest government. Previously, it publicly chastised the government for passing Laws 7 and 8 affecting approximately 25,000 family services workers.

The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) has played a leading role in the campaign to persuade Canadian governments at all levels to live up to the human and labour rights commitments they have made to international bodies. NUPGE