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UN body says Danny Williams' government must act
 Flagrant violation of UN labour standards
an international
embarrassment for Canada
St. John’s — The International Labour Organization's condemnation of
the Newfoundland and Labrador Conservatives is so sweeping that
Premier Danny Williams must take immediate corrective action, says the
340,000-member National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE).
The demand for action is also being made by NUPGE's provincial
component, the Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Public and
Private Employees (NAPE).
"Both the provincial and federal government should be very troubled by
the ILO’s ruling. It damages the human rights reputation of both the
province and the Canadian government,” says
Larry Brown, NUPGE's
national secretary-treasurer.
“Not only is it a black mark on Canada's respected reputation in the
international community, but there are economic implications as well.
Corporations do not view countries with poor human rights records as
places to make stable investment," Brown says.
Brown was in St. John’s to attend the NAPE's biennial convention.
'Trampling human
rights'
“Although collective bargaining is considered a fundamental human
right by the ILO and the United Nations, it appears that the
government of Danny Williams is prepared to trample on human rights
when it comes to dealing with its own employees,” says Brown.
“The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador needs to recognize that
workers’ rights are human rights. All human rights must be enforced.
Governments just can’t pick and choose which human rights they obey
and defend,” Brown argues.
 “It’s embarrassing to the citizens of our province that our government
faces such strong condemnation from an internationally respected
United Nations body,” adds
Carol Furlong, NAPE's newly elected
president.
“At the same time it’s somewhat heartening to know the ILO has upheld
NAPE’s claim. We offered the government the opportunity to settle the
dispute through the independent adjudication process set out in the
Public Service (Collective Bargaining) Act. Premier Danny Williams and
his government refused,” Furlong notes.
“It gives me some comfort to hear that the ILO shares NAPE’s view that
this autocratic approach to collective bargaining is a flagrant
disregard to the human rights of our members and the basic principles
of freedom of association.”
Talk with
premier
Furlong also says she intends to talk to the premier in the near
future about his government’s plans to implement the ILO ruling. She
intends to urge the provincial government to take the ILO’s advice in
future and “refrain in future from adopting such back-to-work
legislation and to use the adjudication process provided for in the
legislation to resolve bargaining impasses . . .”
The ILO ruling also took issue with the lengthy term of the imposed
contract and made the extraordinary request of the government to meet
with the union to re-examine the imposed conditions.
“I will be asking for a meeting with the premier to discuss with him
how and when his government plans to hold these discussions with
NAPE," Furlong says.
"If he refuses to implement the recommendations of the UN body, NAPE
will be asking our National Union to report back to the ILO on the
flagrant disregard our government continues to show to the basic human
rights of our members.” NUPGE
More information:
•
Report of the ILO Governing Body 293rd Session (Paragraphs
399 to 407) pdf file
•
ILO Backgrounder - NUPGE pdf file
•
UN body slams Newfoundland and Labrador government
Web posted by NUPGE:
17 June 2005
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