New Year – Renewed fight for workers' and Charter rights

So far, 2023 has been a busy year for our members and for the ongoing fight for workers' rights.

At the end of November 2022, an Ontario court ruled that the Ford Conservative's Bill 124 – the socalled Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector for Future Generations Act – violates the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Specifically, Justice Koehnen found Bill 124 to be contrary to section 2(d) of the Charter – the freedom to associate – and that it was not justified under section 1 of the Charter, which details reasonable limits.

True to form, on December 29, 2022, the Ford government announced it would appeal that ruling.

On March 6, 2023, the Ontario Court of Appeal struck down another piece of Ford’s legislation, Bill 307, as unconstitutional. That Bill, rammed through the legislature by the Conservatives just before the 2022 election, was a second attempt to silence critics of their government. An earlier version of this legislation – Bill 254, introduced in May 2021 – was overturned by the Ontario Superior Court of

Justice as an infringement on the right to freedom of expression under section 2(b) of the Charter. Shortly after that ruling, Ford introduced the same legislation under Bill 307, but he also invoked the notwithstanding clause to try and prevent a similar Charter challenge.

That's the same notwithstanding clause he tried to use last November to prevent CUPE members from going on strike.

Our Members at Highbury Canco exercised their right to strike and took to the picket line in the early morning of February 13. For weeks, those members withstood the cold while they walked with signs and strike bibs in front of the plant. They received incredible support from the community and in the end they achieved a good contract. You can see photos from the strike on page 6 and read the ratified improvements on page 23.

In 2015, a majority of the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the right to strike is constitutionally protected under the freedom of association in your Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. But if Ford has his way, this and many other freedoms may be at risk.

It’s clear to me, and I hope it’s clear to you, our Members, that Ford is intent on trampling on our Charter rights regardless of what the courts keep telling him.

There are people fighting for basic human rights around the globe. Even south of our border, it is deeply concerning to watch decades of hard-won rights and progress being undone in parts of the United States – banning books, banning African American history from being taught, banning healthcare for transgender individuals, and limiting access to healthcare for women.

As your Union, we will continue to fight back against the Ford Conservatives’ attempts to undermine your Charter rights. We will continue the work of advancing the rights of workers and all people, and we will continue to advocate for the dismantling of oppressive, racist, and gender-biased systems.

In Solidarity,

Shawn Haggerty president@ufcw175.com