Canada’s labour relations laws are failing workers, restricting their choices and potentially stunting job growth and investment, according to a study by the Fraser Institute.
The study, Labour Relations Laws in Canada and the United States, provides an empirical analysis of labour relations laws in the private sector for the 10 Canadian provinces, the Canadian federal government and the 50 American states. The study’s Index of Labour Relations Laws provides an overall measurement of the extent to which jurisdictions achieve balance in their labour relations laws.
Alberta, with a score of 5.3 out of 10, has the most balanced labour relations laws in Canada. But Alberta is the only province to score above 5.0 on the index, an indication of how badly Canadian provinces trail the American states. Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador were the next best, tied with a score of 3.4, while the federal government (1.1) and Manitoba (1.8) have the lowest scores.
By comparison, the 24 states with right-to-work legislation—which allows employees to fully opt out of paying union dues—score 8.5 out of 10. The remaining 26 states each score 6.8 out of 10. Unlike Canadian workers, American workers cannot be compelled to join a union as a condition of their employment.
“Overall, Canadian provinces as well as the federal government dramatically lag behind U.S. states in terms of providing workers with the choices and opportunities that come from balanced, neutral labour relations laws,” says Charles Lammam, study co-author and resident scholar in economic policy at the Fraser Institute.
The study argues that jurisdictions with balanced labour relations laws create a more flexible labour market, which, in turn, leads to higher job-creation rates, lower unemployment and higher investment.
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