The Québec Federation of Labour Unions (CSQ) filed its challenge to the new law on union governance and transparency with the Superior Court on Friday.
This law, introduced by Labour Minister Jean Boulet, is best known for two of its provisions: the establishment of optional union dues in addition to the main dues, as well as requirements for unions to file financial statements.
In the eyes of the union federation, which represents 235,000 members, this is an “unconstitutional, arbitrary, and unfair law.”
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Accordingly, the CSQ and its federations are asking the Superior Court to declare several sections of the law, passed last April, “inapplicable, invalid, and unenforceable.”
They argue that the law infringes upon freedom of expression, freedom of thought, freedom of peaceful assembly, and freedom of association, as guaranteed by the Québecand Canadian charters.
They are also seeking damages for the violation of their fundamental rights.
The union federation is particularly critical of the principle of optional union dues, which are to be used to fund activities such as a public awareness campaign aimed at the general population or the challenge of a law that is not related to working conditions.
Since unions will be required to obtain prior approval from a majority of their members for such optional dues, the CSQ argues that this infringes upon its freedom.
“The fact that the plaintiff federations and the CSQ must obtain prior approval from a majority of the employees of affiliated associations in order to engage in expressive and associative activities protected by fundamental freedoms and their right to equality unjustifiably and substantially infringes upon their freedom of thought, their freedom of expression, their freedom of peaceful assembly, their freedom of association, and their right to equality.”
The union also argues that the law limits its right to challenge in court a law that has no connection to the application of a collective agreement, which it claims violates the rule of law and access to justice.
“Essentially, the government, through the legislature, is taking away two rights from the Plaintiffs: a) the right to bring legal action to protect their own interests and b) the right to bring legal action to protect the public interest,” writes the CSQ in its motion.
“Worse still, the new provisions of the Code effectively shield the government from potential lawsuits regarding its illegal or unconstitutional policies or legislative measures,” adds the labor federation.
The minister of labour has consistently stated that his bill aims to allow union members to have more information about how their union dues are used. The official name of the law is the Act to improve transparency, governance and the democratic process of various workplace associations.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
