OTTAWA — NDP Leader Avi Lewis said the federal government is defying its own labour laws after the head of the Bank of Canada admitted to using replacement workers during a strike involving security officers.
In 2024, Canada passed legislation to ban federally regulated workplaces from bringing in replacement workers during a legal strike, and the new rules took effect last year.
At a rally outside the Bank of Canada Wednesday, Lewis said this strike is the first test of that law.
“This government and this employer have made it absolutely clear that they are prepared to defy the law of this country,” he said.
Security officers at the Bank of Canada went on strike in June after talks failed to secure a new collective agreement between the central bank and the union.
The Canada Industrial Relations Board has released two decisions indicating the central bank contravened the Canada Labour Code by using contractors and the services of union members during the strike.
Tiff Macklem, governor of the Bank of Canada, said in July that some exceptions to the rules allow for the use of replacement workers when necessary to prevent threats to life, health or safety, or to prevent serious damage to property.
“Ahead of the CIRB’s first ruling, the Bank made representations regarding the minimum necessary arrangements to ensure the security of our facilities and people in light of the strike,” he said.
“The bank felt it necessary to put in place alternative arrangements that, in the bank...
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