Canadian HR Strategy

8 Executive Series Digest hrreporter.com For better or worse, it is evident the labour movement is on the brink of a ma- jor makeover. Now, Unifor is in a position to pool its resources to meet the private sector head-on — and give it a run for its money, said outgoing CAW president Ken Lewenza. "It's not just the resources, it's the hu- man potential. I mean, of course, we're combining our strike fund, we're in a much better position if an employer takes us on. We are really now, which we weren't prior to this discussion, going to be a dominant union," he said. "It's been a tough fi ve or six years. e unions have been on defence and have had little opportunity to play off ence. is gives us the confi dence that we are stron- ger in numbers, we're stronger in revenue — but I can't emphasize enough how much stronger we are going to be with the human potential in both organizations, from the staff to the local union leader- ship to the activists." And just as Unifor bills itself as a union for everyone, the key to growth lies in community outreach programs, such as holding chapter meetings for non- union members looking to mobilize, said Lewenza (who is now retired and will serve as an advisor to the union). " at should give us more opportu- nity to build relationships of respect and camaraderie, where people can see the union as a tool for their own progress through community chapters," he said, adding those outlets could serve as an av- enue for temporary employees. " e new bible for Unifor really identi- fi es the absolute need to increase partici- pation, to build a tent outside the labour movement. So we are trying to fi nd a mechanism to have community chapters. Is it possible to have a vision of challeng- ing this kind of precarious contract work requirement by having contract workers joining a community chapter of an orga- nization?" at concept is nothing new. Take the United Steelworkers (USW), for instance. e union introduced Fight Back Amer- ica, an associate member program back in the early 2000s in an attempt to foster community action — and since then, the union said almost 20,000 people in North America and a handful of other countries have signed up. e "associate member program is not a union hiring hall or an apprenticeship program. is program is to encourage information exchange, political activity and creative organizing. It is not a jobs program," said the USW. ough workers cannot legally be rep- resented collectively by a union unless they are backed by the majority of their co-workers, individuals can learn and grow from these community chapters, said Lewenza. Take a look in the mirror But a merger of this magnitude could do more damage than good, according to Si- mon Mortimer, a labour and employment lawyer at Toronto-based law fi rm Hicks Morley. "When I fi rst heard of the merger, I thought that this will be very interest- ing, as these two unions have very dis- tinct cultures," said Mortimer. " e CAW has traditionally been a very centralized, top-down decision-making organization, whereas the CEP has always been decen- tralized. When I fi rst heard the announce- ment, I thought they would have diffi culty merging those two cultures. I wasn't sure if it would come to fruition — I think they've done well to get to this point." Before Unifor can make good on its promise to infi ltrate the non-unionized realm, it fi rst needs to take a look in the mirror, said Mortimer. Since both unions had very diff erent internal regimes, com- plications might arise in the upcoming fusing process — and that could muddle the relationship between employers and the bargaining unit. "For an employer who is unionized by one of these two unions, it may make for some cultural change, as CEP thinking comes into CAW thinking, and the CAW thinking comes into the CEP," he said. As for managers of a non-unionized workplace, preventative measures are one way to avoid a kerfuffl e at the bargaining table. Generally, employees opt to certify when an employer is not in line with oth- ers in the industry, or if there is a point of contention between staff and their bosses. So it stands to reason that happy work- places make for happy workers. Union-free employers earmark 10 per cent of their budgets to organizing eff orts, said Mortimer, which betters the chances of a smooth transition, should staff decide to certify. e odds favour employers, he said, and because most companies are smaller than the union, management is in a better position to listen to what staff want and to provide it for them. At the other end of the spectrum sits John Mortimer, president of Labour Watch, a non-profi t group based in Van- couver dedicated to advancing employee rights. Recent polls conducted by his or- ganization indicate the majority of Ca- nadians do not want to be unionized, he said. "(Private sector unions') core is their legacy, organizing from the past, from a very diff erent era," he said, adding that ad- vances in labour legislation have spawned a more sophisticated workplace. "Why do most unions fail or not get anywhere? Because management re- sponds by fi nding out what's wrong in the workplace. Is this a weak management situation? Is this bad policy rollout? Is this a misunderstanding? Is the union lying to your people?" said Mortimer. "Go and lis- ten to your people, why are they consider- ing it? If you're in the private sector just be "GO AND LISTEN TO YOUR PEOPLE, WHY ARE THEY CONSIDERING IT? IF YOU'RE IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR, JUST BE A GOOD BUSINESS. TAKE CARE OF THE PEOPLE THAT TAKE CARE OF YOUR CUSTOMER." LABOUR RELATIONS

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