This course critically examines Canadian labour law, which is currently predicated on the “Wagner Act model” of collective bargaining law, and asks whether other models are needed and available to meet new challenges.
Although the Wagner Act model has been the legal framework for the growth of the modern labour movement in Canada, this system never worked particularly well for workers in smaller workplaces and in non-traditional forms of employment. Today, this model is severely challenged by changes in the way work is performed (such as the rise of the “gig” economy), and changes in the structure of firms and production processes. Given that collective bargaining is a constitutionally and statutorily protected right, we must ask the question of what we can do, in light of the recent developments and longstanding problems, to ensure that all workers have meaningful access to that right – particularly precarious workers and those who have been historically underrepresented, as well as those labouring in the new economy.
This course will begin by taking stock of the status quo of worker representation under the Wagner Act model. It will then explore existing alternative models of labour relations which have evolved alongside the standard Wagner Act model. These can be observed in sectors which don’t fit neatly within the standard framework of long-term employment with a single employer. The best developed alternative model is found in the construction industry – an industry which shares work structures which are also found in the film and other industries. A central question is whether such examples might serve as a model for gig workers and other precarious and historically underrepresented workers. But, the objective is not only to look outside the standard model – but, having done so, to then ask the question whether that model itself is adequate to our Charter commitments.
This course will thus explore the future of labour law and collective worker representation beyond the Wagner model. Topics may include sectoral or broader-based bargaining, labour relations in the construction industry, film industry, and the gig economy, as well as alternative forms of collective worker action such as employment class actions and workers’ centres.
