| Alberta labour unions being forced to face off against each other under the provincial government’s controversial new Bill 27 say that, ironically, it may end up giving health care unions a more powerful voice.
The provincial government says the legislation is intended to streamline health care bargaining, but union leaders have spent weeks lambasting it for stripping some health care workers of the right to strike and giving too much power to the Alberta Labour Relations Board. Some critics have also said it is an attempt by the provincial government to quell the power of the unions.
The legislation is creates four bargaining units in each health region, which effectively trims the number of negotiated agreements with health care workers in the province down to 36 from more than 400. It also means some groups of workers who are now represented by two unions will be forced to choose between them in runoff votes.
Union leaders from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) say they resent being forced to compete with each other for the right to represent workers, but have already launched campaign-style strategies to win votes.
They also say once those votes have been cast, forcing workers to choose a single union may end up giving them a stronger voice.
"At the end of the day, there is only going to be one contract. I think it’s going to add strength to that bargaining unit sitting across the table," says Bruce MacLeod, the president of CUPE Alberta. "The balance of power, if there is a balance of power in Alberta, is going back to the unions."
"In my view, this is going to make the unions stronger. There’s strength in numbers," says AUPE’s David Climenhaga. "I get the sense (the provincial government) didn’t really think this through."
Yonatan Reshef, a professor of business at the University of Alberta, says unions in Alberta have little power, but forcing them to merge in the health care sector may work to their benefit.
"Unions in Alberta are weak to begin with, so I don’t think this will strengthen them in any way, but it does mean the government won’t be able to play unions against each other," Reshef says.
"If they decide to strike, it will be illegal, but if they do make that decision… it’s always easier for one union to organize a strike than two. There’s less co-ordination."
The provincial government, meanwhile, says it is undertaking the changes as part of its effort to streamline the health care system. |
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