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Is this just tough talk on the part of Quebec Premier Couillard or can they force striking workers back to work.
Since these are construction workers I assume they are not gov't workers but private sector.
What if the workers just stay home (not march), will police go and arrest them or their union leaders?
Hard to envision that happening in Canada. I'm really curious how this could play out.
I know it's the World Socialist web site but the article seems legit.
"On the second day of a strike by 175,000 Quebec construction workers that has shut down hundreds of building sites across Canada’s second most populous province, thousands of workers took to the streets to highlight their opposition to the construction bosses’ sweeping concession demands......"
".......While the workers were marching Thursday morning, Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard announced his Liberal government will illegalize the strike if workers are not back on the job by Monday morning....."
Is this just tough talk on the part of Quebec Premier Couillard or can they force striking workers back to work.
Governments can force striking workers back to work, by passing legislation. That's typically a last-ditch approach, after negotiations have broken down, and work must be done.
I don't understand all the details of the Quebec labour dispute, but I'm guessing that these are private contractors working on contracts for the Quebec government. That puts the dispute in the Quebec government's purview. If the work isn't done, who is inconvenienced? Quebecers, who must now travel on unfinished streets, unfinished bridges, and so on. Work must be done, to complete the Quebec government's wishes.
By way of contrast, imagine if Ford of Canada employees go on strike. Who gets hurt? Ford of Canada does, and so do its employees, but nobody else. If you can't buy a Ford, you can buy a Chevy or a Dodge or a Toyota. You're not inconvenienced, unless you're a die-hard Ford fan. And no province will step in to stop it, unless violence erupts on the picket line. Even then, once the violence is quelled by police, the strike can go on.
So, when the Quebec government find itself subject to a strike, and its people are continually late for work, for picking up the kids, for getting places, and it's all due to a strike within the Quebec government's purview, then they (like any province) will take whatever steps are necessary to stop it. Unlike Ford, or other private employers, Quebec, like any province, has the legislative power to do so.
Edited to add: The "World Socialist Web Site?" I have my doubts that it is a source of unbiased news and/or opinion.
Last edited by ChevySpoons; 06-05-2017 at 12:49 AM..
Governments can force striking workers back to work, by passing legislation. That's typically a last-ditch approach, after negotiations have broken down, and work must be done.
I don't understand all the details of the Quebec labour dispute, but I'm guessing that these are private contractors working on contracts for the Quebec government. That puts the dispute in the Quebec government's purview. If the work isn't done, who is inconvenienced? Quebecers, who must now travel on unfinished streets, unfinished bridges, and so on. Work must be done, to complete the Quebec government's wishes.
By way of contrast, imagine if Ford of Canada employees go on strike. Who gets hurt? Ford of Canada does, and so do its employees, but nobody else. If you can't buy a Ford, you can buy a Chevy or a Dodge or a Toyota. You're not inconvenienced, unless you're a die-hard Ford fan. And no province will step in to stop it, unless violence erupts on the picket line. Even then, once the violence is quelled by police, the strike can go on.
So, when the Quebec government find itself subject to a strike, and its people are continually late for work, for picking up the kids, for getting places, and it's all due to a strike within the Quebec government's purview, then they (like any province) will take whatever steps are necessary to stop it. Unlike Ford, or other private employers, Quebec, like any province, has the legislative power to do so.
Edited to add: The "World Socialist Web Site?" I have my doubts that it is a source of unbiased news and/or opinion.
Good points and makes sense if gov't contracts are at stake. I agree with you on the website. Thanks.
This aspect of governance and accepted legislative practices changes with the times.
As more and more services are deemed essential, if not legally at least perception based, the governments are forced to take action to be seen acting on behalf of their electorate and this sometimes leads to conflict of rights versus legally warranted privileges.
While strikes have proven necessary over time, neither side wins and walks away unbloodied.
Some interesting research can be done googling "wage and price controls" to glean info and further understanding as to how governments can be somewhat duplicitous in their dealings with the private sector labour force while spending like drunken sailors themselves.
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