Perry Work Report, June 13, 2014

June 13, 2014

Announcements:

Labour-Management Relations Certificate Program -- 2nd Annual Offering (September 14-19, 2014)

Edwards School of Business, University of Saskatchewan, is now taking applications for the second offering of the new training initiative for labour relations (LR) professionals in Western Canada.  It is an intensive five day program intended for labour leaders, human resource managers, and labour relations officers. 

Edward’s professor Scott Walsworth is serving as program Director.  He explains:

"Last year’s course was very well received by the practitioner community.  In reviewing participant feedback, I can put my finger on three main strengths of the program: 1) the content was deemed very appropriate for building professionals skills.  Topics such as collective bargaining, grievance arbitration, mediation, and labour legislation were especially popular; 2) the delivery method was really appreciated.  We made an effort to avoid long lecture periods, and instead we peppered the week with group exercises, panel discussions, simulations and lively debates; 3) the sense of community the program fostered.  To some degree this surprised me.  Participants reported coming into the week rooted in their respective union or management camps but by the end of the week (and after several pub events) we were a cohesive group, perhaps with different perspectives, but pulled together by a renewed sense of professionalism.”

This year’s schedule has all the items that worked really well last year, such as a full day workshop on grievance arbitration and a collective bargaining simulation, but it will also include new items such as a financial literacy workshop, delivered be Edwards accounting professor Gary Entwistle, specifically tailored to LR professionals preparing and reading financial statements.

The program is led by a small group of experts, the likes of Daphne Taras, Allen Ponak, Dionne Pohler and Beth Bilson, and is offered by the Edwards School of Business and the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy at the University of Saskatchewan. 

The LRM Certificate is now accepting applications for the September 2014 offering.  Space is limited to 24 spots (12 union and 12 employer). Click here for more information.

The Impact of Collective Bargaining Legislation on Strike Activity and Wage Settlements

New research from Michele Campolieti, Robert Hebdon, and Benjamin Dachis:

From the abstract: “We examine the effects of collective bargaining legislation, such as (among others) bans on replacement workers and reinstatement rights, on private sector strike activity and wage settlements using Canadian data from 1978 to 2008. Our estimates indicate that this legislation does not have a statistically significant effect on the incidence of strikes. However, we do find that some of the policy variables have a statistically significant effect on strike duration and wage settlements.”

Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, June 3, 2014: “The Impact of Collective Bargaining Legislation on Strike Activity and Wage Settlements,” by Michele Campolieti, Robert Hebdon, and Benjamin Dachis

Download the PDF version here (36 pages).

 

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Ontario Political Parties All Promote Age-Gap in Spending: Report

"The age-gap in government spending is going to grow no matter who wins the provincial election, according to a report from the advocacy group Generation Squeeze".

"Generation Squeeze, a Canadian group that advocates increases in social spending on younger Canadians, analyzed the recently defeated Ontario budget and the other political parties’ platforms."

"The report, co-authored by the group’s founder, University of British Columbia professor Paul Kershaw, found that all four major Ontario parties are campaigning on platforms that will raise government spending for older Ontarians, but offer relatively little for younger ones."

Even though “the younger generation -- dubbed generation squeeze -- [is] facing lower hourly wages, higher education, childcare and housing costs, than previous generations.”

"The backdrop to the Ontario election study is the status quo across Canada, which sees much greater spending by all governments on older Canadians than younger Canadians, said ... Kershaw."

"He evaluated the ‘age gap’ across Canada in a separate recent study and found that Canadian governments combine to spend annually between $38,000 and $45,000 on average on each person age 65 and over, compared to approximately $12,000 on average on each citizen under age 45."

"So, while Canadians aged 65-plus make up about 15 per cent of the population, they represent 42 per cent of the social spending, the study found."

Metro News, June 11, 2014: “Ontario political parties all promote age-gap in spending: Report,” by Jessica Smith Cross

Generation Squeeze, June 10, 2014: “Wondering how the Ontario Parties stack up on Generational Equity?,” by Paul Kershaw

Generation Squeeze, June 9, 2014: “Ontario Election 2014 Study: Parties Prioritize Spending More on Retirees, Not Younger Generations,” by Paul Kershaw (12 pages, PDF)

Generation Squeeze, March 31, 2014: “Measuring the Generational Spending Gap in Canada,” by Paul Kershaw and Lynell Anderson (27 pages, PDF)

Generation Squeeze -- The Squeeze

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B.C. Teachers' Strike

“The B.C. Teachers' Federation has told its members it will serve notice of a full-scale strike beginning next Tuesday [June 17, 2014], one day after 86 per cent voted in favour of escalating their job action.”

“In a letter to its members, the union confirmed it will serve notice of strike action likely starting on June 17 and also designated Monday [June 16, 2014] a study session day throughout the province.”

“This would mean teachers would spend Monday [June 16, 2014] meeting with union representatives all day -- making this Friday [June 13, 2014] the last day of the school year.”

“‘We believe that the combined actions of bargaining hard and the solidarity of standing together are the key ingredients needed to get a deal that works for teachers and for our students before June 30 and hopefully sooner,’ said the letter. ‘Please know that both parties are currently involved in discussions,’ the letter continued. ‘Our intention is to bargain non-stop throughout the weekend. We believe that a small, but important window to negotiate a fair deal exists and we want to take every opportunity to get that deal.’"

CBC News, June 10, 2014: “B.C. teachers to begin full-scale strike Tuesday”

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A Heated Debate Over Fracking

"If you want jobs, you need to pump and transport oil and gas, albeit as safely as humanly possible. That’s been the mantra from B.C. premier Christy Clark -- a key, many would argue, to her surprise victory in the 2013 provincial election."

"It’s a message one might assume resonates with organized labour in B.C., given that resource extraction has been vital to the province’s economy. But union support for Clark’s agenda is more complex and even fragmented."

"The arguments within, and among, unions turn on a couple of debates:"

"Whether, while creating jobs, mining gas or transporting bitumen can in fact be done safely and socially responsibly."

"And whether various petro-projects will produce significant numbers of good, lasting jobs at all."

Continue reading here to find out various unions’ position on the issue.

The Tyee, June 10, 2014: “In BC, Ample Fuels for Union Debates,” by Tom Sandborn

Meanwhile, “[a] British Columbia-based consortium is proposing a $10-billion refinery for Canada’s West Coast, the second such plan aimed at winning support for processing and exporting petroleum products manufactured from the oil sands.”

"The aim is to develop a ‘near-net-zero’ bitumen refinery using an environmentally friendly design powered by natural gas and renewables and employing carbon-capture technology."

"The backers say it will create an estimated 3,000 permanent jobs."

"The proposal comes days before an expected federal approval of Enbridge Inc.’s $7.9-billion Northern Gateway oil pipeline to Kitimat, B.C., from Alberta. The contentious project faces staunch opposition from aboriginal groups in British Columbia as well as environmentalists."

The Globe and Mail, June 9, 2014: “B.C. group pitches $10-billion ‘environmentally responsible’ refinery,” by Jeffrey Jones

"What is the state of knowledge of potential environmental impacts from the exploration, extraction, and development of Canada's shale gas resources, and what is the state of knowledge of associated mitigation options?"

Report and related products:

Council of Canadian Academies, May 1, 2014: "Environmental Impacts of Shale Gas Extraction in Canada"

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Stephen Harper's Blatant Hypocrisy

"In [a CBC exclusive] interview, [Prime Minister Stephen] Harper told the public, ‘I frankly don’t understand people who are walking away in our society from something that’s proven to work.’ Except that seems to describe him and his government. What about the Experimental Lakes Area, an internationally renowned research station that has been critical for our understanding of dangerous water contaminants? The federal government walked away entirely from funding the modest $2-million per year centre, effectively ending the ELA. It took the force of a concerned citizens’ coalition to reopen it by facilitating a partnership between the government of Ontario and a Manitoba-based think-tank.”

"What about Insite? Vancouver’s safe-injection site has never had a death among clients and was proven to reduce the spread of HIV as well as facilitate addicts transitioning into treatment. The federal government not only walked away from funding, but actively tried to shutter the facility. It was only kept open because of a Supreme Court order after lengthy legal battles."

"During his CBC interview, Harper supported his vaccination advocacy by saying that ‘we do have scientists and medical professionals who do great work and verify this.’ But in Canada, we have ever fewer such practitioners. More than 2,000 federal scientists have been dismissed since 2009. This government has cut or closed approximately 200 scientific research and monitoring institutions, many dealing with issues of monitoring food safety, environmental contaminants and other domains directly affecting the health of Canadians."

"The hypocrisy of Harper’s recent statements runs even deeper. The prime minister shared some thoughts about effective policies and programs in the developing world, saying ‘...you’re going to kind of start to hit a wall if you don’t have better baseline data.’ Indeed. How long after the axing of the mandatory long-form census will Canada hit the wall? From the drastically insufficient national household survey, we won’t even have appropriate baseline data about the basic demographics of our own country to plan hospital locations. It’s good to know we are prioritizing the collection of quality data in Tanzania, if not at home."

The Toronto Star, June 6, 2014: “Stephen Harper’s blatant hypocrisy on science," by Alana Westwood

CBC News, May 29, 2014: “Vaccinations are ‘proven to work’: Melinda Gates, Stephen Harper,” by Trinh Theresa Do

 

"In reforming Canada on the basis of his brand of conservatism, the Prime Minister shows no sign of a let up. How far to the right can he move the country? Just watch him."

The Globe and Mail, June 10, 2014: "There’s no stopping our march to the right,” Lawrence Martin

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Professional Decline and Resistance: The Case of Library and Archives Canada

From the abstract: “In 2004, Canada was the first country in the world to amalgamate its two main documentary heritage institutions, the National Archives of Canada (established in 1872) and the National Library of Canada (established in 1953) into one ‘modernized’ institution: Library and Archives Canada (LAC). The ‘modernization’ policy has commercialized and reduced services, collections, and collaboration while simultaneously deprofessionalizing and casualizing the work of professionals. Resistance to modernization has come from many stakeholders across Canada but the responses by the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) and the Canadian Library Association (CLA) are particularly salient. Both are national organizations concerned with access to information and Canada’s documentary heritage. The case of LAC demonstrates how a neoliberal remaking of one prominent, national institution can weaken entire professions.”

Radical Teacher, Spring 2014: “Professional Decline and Resistance: The Case of Library and Archives Canada,” by Tami Oliphant and Michael B. McNally

Download the PDF version here (8 pages).

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Woman-Splaining the Wage Gap

"Women are attending college and university in greater numbers than men. They are entering professions that were previously male-dominated -- such as business, law and medicine. Yet research has shown that they make less from the first day of their professional working careers to the last. Catalyst found that female MBA graduates started their careers making $8,167 less than male MBA graduates. On day one. That’s not a failure to lean in. That’s not a choice to drop out. That’s discrimination.”

"The consequences are even greater for women at the lower end of the wage spectrum. Over 1.2 million women in Canada, who work full-year, full-time, still earn less than $35,000. Why is that an important number? Because that is the average cost of a ‘market basket’ of basic goods and services for a family."

"Thirty per cent of all full-time female workers don’t earn enough to provide for themselves and their families (compared to 14 per cent of men). That’s not a lifestyle choice. That’s the difference between putting food in your grocery cart and taking it out."

rabble.ca, June 10: 2014: “A paycheque is not a lifestyle choice: Woman-splaining the wage gap,” by Kate McInturff

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives project -- Making Women Count

Conference Board of Canada, May 2014: “How Canada Performs: Gender Income Gap”

Shorenstein Centre, Harvard, Journalist’s Resource, May 23, 2014: “How ‘overwork’ helps explain the gender pay gap: Data analysis,” by Justin Feldman

American Association of University Women, March 10, 2014: “The Simple Truth about the Gender Pay Gap (2014),” by Christi Corbett (28 pages, PDF)

American Association of University Women, October 24, 2012: “Graduating to a Pay Gap: The Earnings of Women and Men One Year after College Graduation,” by Catherine Hill (64 pages, PDF)

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New Research Shows Deeply Unequal Benefits Under Income Splitting

"The Harper government’s income splitting plan is more expensive than previously believed, helps even fewer Canadians than earlier thought and would benefit Conservative strongholds such as Alberta and Saskatchewan more than other provinces, according to a study by the Broadbent Institute."

"As the C.D. Howe Institute found in 2011, the proposal would provide no benefit to the vast majority of families while giving the biggest benefits to the country’s most affluent single-income families.”

"But the latest analysis digs deeper into the data, using Statistics Canada’s social policy simulation database which estimates benefits for families in 2015, the expected year of implementation."

"It finds the program would cost the Ottawa treasury about $3 billion a year and direct the lion’s share of tax savings to higher income families, while providing no benefit at all to about 90 per cent of households. Those numbers are slightly higher than estimated by C.D. Howe in 2011."

The Toronto Star, June 10, 2014: “Alberta, biggest winner of Ottawa’s income splitting plan,” by Julian Beltrame

Broadbent Institute, June 10, 2014: “The Big Split: Income Splitting’s Unequal Distribution of Benefits Across Canada” (15 pages PDF)

The Big Split -- Infographic

The Broadbent Institute -- Mad Men Giveaway

iPolitics, February 13, 2014: “Back to the kitchen, moms: Why Harper wants income-splitting,” by Andrew Jackson

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, January 28, 2014: “Income Splitting in Canada: Inequality by Design,” by David Macdonald

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Statistics Canada's Report on Labour

“The Canadian economy created 25,800 jobs last month as gains in part-time positions outweighed a decline in full-time work.”

"Despite last month’s job gains, the report ‘pounds home the point that underlying Canadian job growth remains anemic,’ noted Douglas Porter, chief economist at BMO Nesbitt Burns, adding that the modest gains ‘are almost entirely concentrated in piping hot Alberta,’ with the rest of the country managing just 0.1 per cent growth in the past year."

“‘Combined with sluggish wages, soft hours worked, and the questionable quality of the jobs produced all adds up to a lacklustre labour market,’ he said.”

"Job growth in the past year has been all on the part-time side. Full-time work is down by 0.2 per cent or 26,700 jobs, in the past year while part-time jobs have grown by 3.4 per cent or 112,200 positions."

The Globe and Mail, June 6, 2014: “Canada’s job market ‘lacklustre’ as part-time work dominates,” by Tavia Grant

Statistics Canada’s The Daily, June 6, 2014: “Labour Force Survey, May 2014”

Canadian Centre of Policy Alternatives’ Behind the Numbers blog, June 6th, 2014: “Latest job stats show Ontario on unsteady ground,” by Kaylie Tiessen

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OECD and Don Drummond on Canada's Labour Market

“There is no generalized skills shortage in Canada but tensions are emerging in certain sectors and regions, [OECD secretary-general Angel Gurria] said. Earnings premiums have increased markedly in engineering, management and health care, pointing to skills shortages there. Job-vacancy rates in skilled trades have also increased sharply, especially in Alberta and Saskatchewan.”

“To reduce skills shortages, the Economic Survey of Canada calls for continued efforts to improve labour market information in order to bring students’ study choices more into line with labour market requirements. It also recommends harmonizing apprenticeship certifications across the country, to increase completion rates by boosting interprovincial mobility for apprentices.”

“Greater local-level involvement in the implementation of employment and skills policies is vital to align skills development efforts with employers’ needs, said the Employment and Skills Strategies in Canada -- OECD Review on Local Job Creation. The report analyzes policies in Ontario and Quebec and makes recommendations on how to better connect employment, skills and economic development.”

Canadian HR Reporter, June 12, 2014: “Canada must overcome sector-specific skills shortages: OECD”

OECD, June 2014: "Economic Surveys: Canada" (47 pages, PDF)

OECD, June 11, 2014: “Employment and Skills Strategies in Canada”

Statistics Canada's The Daily, June 11, 2014: “Registered apprenticeship training programs, 2012”

“Summary:

  • Since the Advisory Panel on Labour Market Information (LMI) reported, improvements have been made to LMI, but they are not sufficient.
  • The main obstacle to reform is a lack of good governance. The Forum of Labour Market Ministers has been unable to coordinate a more integrated LMI system. No one has taken charge.
  • The federal government should take the lead, either by strengthening Statistics Canada’s capacity or by establishing an LMI agency”

Institute for Research on Public Policy, June 11, 2014: “Wanted: Good Canadian Labour Market Information,” by Don Drummond

IIRP Insight, June 2014: “Wanted: Good Canadian Labour Market Information,” by Don Drummond (21 pages, PDF)

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Leadership in Social Enterprise

"Based on numerous in-depth interviews and a global survey of Schwab Social Entrepreneurs, four main challenges have been identified.”

  1. Building a management team
  2. Delegation and succession
  3. Balancing and integrating
  4. Personal and professional development

“These challenges are the backbone of this manual and gave the task force the needed guidance. Throughout this manual, they are illustrated with quotes and case examples from interviewed Schwab Social Entrepreneurs, which are displayed anonymously to encourage candid response."

World Economic Forum, Shwab Foundation for Social Entreprenurship, June 10, 2014: "Leadership in Social Enterprise How to Manage Yourself and the Team" (56 pages, PDF)

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The Right to Strike and the ILO

"A new 122-page [International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC)] legal report, confirming that the right to strike is protected under international law, has been released [June 3, 2014] as employers try to overturn decades of jurisprudence at the International Labour Organisation."

"Employer representatives at the ILO are continuing their efforts to strip back ILO Convention 87 on Freedom of Association, which guarantees workers the right to take strike action, as the UN agency holds its 103rd International Labour Conference in Geneva this month."

"As the ITUC’s new Global Rights Index shows, the right to strike is frequently restricted in law and violated in practice around the world. In Cambodia, employers even recently called on the government to denounce ILO Convention 87, while bringing lawsuits against unions that took to the streets to protest against poverty wages in the garment industry.”

International Trade Union Confederation, June 3, 2014: “New Legal Report: Right to Strike Backed by International Law”

International Trade Union Confederation, March 2014: “The Right to Strike and the ILO: The Legal Foundations” (122 pages, PDF)

Click here to listen to a Radio Labour interview with Jeff Vogt, a legal advisor with the Human and Trade Union Rights department of the ITUC, on the issue.

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LO Adopts New Protocol to Tackle Modern Forms of Forced Labour

"The International Labour Organization (ILO) has adopted a new legally binding Protocol designed to strengthen global efforts to eliminate forced labour."

"The new Protocol brings the existing ILO Convention 29 on Forced Labour, adopted in 1930, into the modern era to address practices such as human trafficking. The accompanying Recommendation provides technical guidance on its implementation.”

"The Protocol strengthens the international legal framework by creating new obligations to prevent forced labour, to protect victims and to provide access to remedy, such as compensation for material and physical harm."

“It requires governments to take measures to better protect workers, in particular migrant labourers, from fraudulent and abusive recruitment practices and emphasizes the role of employers and workers in the fight against forced labour.”

International Labour Organization, June 11, 2014: “ILO adopts new Protocol to tackle modern forms of forced labour”

International Labour Organization, May-June 2014: “Report of the Committee on Forced Labour: Supplementing the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29)” (130 pages, PDF)

International Labour Organization, May 20, 2014: “Profits and Poverty: The Economics of Forced Labour” (66 pages, PDF)

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Navigating OECD's Work on Education with GPS

"We use GPS as a navigation device all the time, in our cars, our phones and on our computers. Now you can also navigate the world of education through the OECD’s Education GPS."

"The tool is in three parts, the first component, ‘Analyse by country’ allows you to draw from a wide variety of education indicators and data to create your own country report based on your own customizations.”

"The second tool, ‘Explore data’ is a wealth of knowledge giving you easy access to the OECD’s educational data from sources such as PISA, Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC), Education at a Glance and numerous additional data sources.”

"The third and most recent addition to the GPS tool, ‘Review education policies’ allows you to travel through the OECD’s extensive knowledge base of research and analysis of education policies and practices across the world.”

OECD Insights, June 11, 2014: “Navigating OECD’s work on education with GPS,” by Andreas Schleicher

OECD Education GPS -- Country profile: Canada

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International Economic Association's Shared Prosperity Round Table

"The issues of inequality and shared prosperity have increasingly gained attention in the development policy agenda of international organizations like the OECD, IMF and the World Bank. Similarly, countries, regardless of their development levels, are trying to better understand the linkages between inequality and growth. Inequality has come into the mainstream of economic policy discourse in a major way and this opens up scope for exciting new research, analysis and policy. This session [on June 10, 2014 in Dead Sea, Jordan] will address questions from measurements of income distribution, trends within and across regions of the world, and the linkages/tradeoffs between inequality and growth."

International Economic Association, June 10, 2014: “Shared Prosperity”

Click here to view the program.

From the plenary session:

International Economic Association, June 10, 2014: “Why is inequality so unequal across the world? Could it be that every nation gets the inequality it deserves?,” by Jose Gabriel Palma (51 pages, PDF)

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Book of the Week

Democracy in Decline: Steps in the Wrong Direction, by James Allan. Montreal : McGill-Queen's University Press, 2014. 181 p. ISBN 9780773543508 (hardcover)

From the publisher: "Part lament, part provocative call-to-action, Democracy in Decline charts how democracy is being diluted and restricted in five of the world's oldest democracies -- the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. James Allan targets four main, interconnected causes of decline -- judicial activism, the transformation and growth of international law, the development of supranational organizations, and the presence of undemocratic elites. He presents a convincing argument that the same trends are occurring whether the country has a constitutional bill of rights (United States and Canada), a statutory bill of rights (the United Kingdom and New Zealand), or no bill of rights at all (Australia). Identifying tactics used by lawyers, judges, and international bureaucrats to deny that any decline has occurred, Allan looks ahead to further deterioration caused by attacks on free speech, intolerant worldviews, internationalization through treaties and conventions, and illegal immigration. Social and political decisions, Allan argues, must be based on counting every adult in a nation state as equal. An essential book for anyone concerned with majority rule and fairness in numbers, Democracy in Decline presents a clear, well-stated account of trends that have been undermining democracy over three decades."

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