What if you couldn't strike?

Air Canada is still unable to come to a contract agreement with its flight attendants. Six months ago, the workers had turned down two deals and were poised to walk out. The whole purpose of unions is to uphold the rights and interests of the worker, and yet the Canadian government decided they couldn't let this happen. The federal Minister of Labour, Lisa Raitt, blocked the strike by forcing the issue to be examined by a third party. The catch was that no strike could occur until the third party returned a report on why the flight crews were unwilling to accept the new contracts.

Now here we are, well into 2012 and it's happening again. As Air Canada prepared to lock out pilots and workers set their sights on the picket lines, the federal government stepped in. As with the flight attendants, the Labour Minister referred the issue to the Canadian Industrial Relations Board. Raitt went on to introduce a back-to-work bill to block the workers, claiming that the economic impact of an Air Canada strike would be too significant to allow. When asked why the government won't just declare Air Canada an essential service, which would also prevent a strike, Raitt answered that there's no guarantee that in the future the airline will be so dominant in the market.

It's a sad day when one of the fundamental rights of an entire group of people is taken away by their own government. The flawed excuse being pushed is that this strike, if allowed, would result in thousands of Canadians being stranded after the March Break holidays. When Air Canada workers were preparing to go on strike in October, provisions were in place to ensure that some flights would still be operational. There are also competitors who would be more than happy to pick up the slack. This bill effectively blocks a huge opportunity for companies like WestJet to offer alternative service.

It's not as though the employees are seeking a particularly extreme package, just one comparable to the contract they had before Air Canada declared bankruptcy almost a decade ago. The Labour Minister is playing both sides of the issue by not only refusing to declare Air Canada an essential service, but also refusing to allow them to strike. Declaring it an essential service could create potential problems in the future if Air Canada were to become a smaller player in the Canadian airline industry and yet held the title of “essential service.” The title could be perceived to cast responsibility on the government for support or even provide the company with a competitive advantage. On the other hand, the Conservatives have already crunched the numbers to show that the Canadian economy could suffer a loss of $28 million per week in profits if the employees are to strike. The act of blocking a strike for a price tag blatantly tells Canadians that for a price, their civil liberties can be swept under the rug.

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