CSD Construction points out that Bill 51, which amends Act R-20, also known as the Construction Act, benefits employers to the detriment of workers in the regions.
“We’re very bitter about the bill. The only portion of the bill that stems from associations representing workers and which benefits them directly is the payment of retroactive wages once a collective agreement is signed. But even that is not guaranteed: we will need to negotiate it with employers. On the other hand, the bill accedes to the employer associations’ demands for mobility, without the need for any negotiation. They’re taking away our power to negotiate measures to protect workers in the regions,” explains Carl Dufour.
Retention measures conspicuously absent from the bill
CSD Construction believes that the solution to improving productivity lies in workforce retention. “Rather than squeezing more out of the workforce and devaluing our trades by expanding our list of tasks, we need to make sure our workers don’t leave the industry. The statistics speak for themselves: 56% of women and 35% of men leave after 5 years spent in the industry,” explains the president.
There are solutions available to improve retention. They include ensuring safe working conditions, making sure employers meet their obligations to workers, strengthening protections against harassment, improving work-life balance measures and, of course, valuing training.
Regional hiring priority is nonnegotiable
CSD Construction notes that the government has responded to one of the employers’ main demands by prohibiting good faith negotiations on labour mobility clauses. “Figures published by the CCQ show that, on average, workers in regions accumulate fewer hours than those located in major centres. Now, the Minister of Labour is telling us that we can no longer negotiate clauses to protect them. This is completely unacceptable,” adds Mr. Dufour.
CSD Construction will make its positions known in a brief to be tabled in a parliamentary committee. “We hope the Minister will pay attention to what we have to say. The Minister needs to understand the reality of construction workers and how things really work in the industry, and adjust his bill consequently to ensure those changes don’t negatively impact the workers,” concludes Carl Dufour.
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