Canada’s largest union is welcoming news that reporting requirements under the anti-worker legislation Bill C-377 have been halted. The Canadian Union of Public Employees is urging the federal government to move quickly in the new year to fully repeal the legislation.
“Bill C-377 was nothing more than a partisan political attack by the former Conservative government on the rights of freedom of association and speech of workers,” said Mark Hancock, national president of CUPE. “This is a good first step in re-establishing a sense of respect for unions, the democratic voice of working people.”
In an announcement earlier this week, the federal Minister of National Revenue waived reporting requirements under Bill C-377 that were to take effect on December 31, 2015. The legislation has been widely criticized by constitutional, legal, and privacy experts.
“Bill C-377 was introduced to weaken trade unions with unnecessary and punitive reporting requirements,” said Charles Fleury, national secretary-treasurer of CUPE. “As a democratic organization, our union is accountable to our members first and foremost. This was a direct attack on our role and responsibility to speak for our members in our workplaces and in our communities.”