Brave New World - Fundamental Labour Rights in the Charter Era

The first is a brief historical overview of the political de- bate around the inclusion and meaning of freedom of association during the drafting of the Charter in the 15 Every jurisdiction in Canada has experienced a major violation of the bargaining rights of its citizens. [...] The Canadian labour movement was not an active participant in the national debate around the draft- ing of Canada’s Charter.19 In deference to the Quebec Federation of Labour’s opposition to the Charter, the Canadian Labour Congress did not participate in hearings of the Special Joint Committee of the Sen- ate and the house of Commons, which examined its terms in detail and recommended amendments.. [...] Instead, he held that: the constitutional guarantee of freedom of asso- ciation in section 2(d) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms does not include, in the case of a trade union, a guarantee of the right to bargain collectively and the right to strike.31 Rather than understanding the freedom of associ- ation as protecting collective rights, such as the right 27 Public Service Employee. [...] — 23 — While the division within the senting opinions of the Court,”63 the two judges held Supreme Court was sharp and that section 2(d) of the Charter protects both the right to freedom of association generally and the freedom deep, the view that freedom to join a trade union specifically. [...] The three cases of the 1987 trilogy […] are especially deter- minative of the issue as they explore the concept in the labour relations context.67 Despite the unrelenting and consistent objections of a minority of the Supreme Court since the First Labour Trilogy, the majority in Delisle held that the interpreta- tion of section 2(d) had been settled by the First Labour Trilogy and that the status.