'This legislation represents a frontal attack on workers' fundamental rights'
Four faculty associations at McGill University have filed a legal challenge against Quebec’s Bill 89, according to a report.
The faculty associations—representing over 500 academics—argue that the legislation violates the constitutional right to strike and undermines collective bargaining.
"This legislation represents a frontal attack on workers' fundamental rights," said Evan Fox-Decent, a law professor and president of the Association of McGill Professors of Law, according to the Confederation of Faculty Associations of McGill (COFAM) and CBC.
The COFAM announced Tuesday that it has filed an application for judicial review in Quebec Superior Court, seeking to have the law declared unconstitutional and invalid from the date it was passed.
Earlier this year, Quebec tabled Bill 89, legislation that aims to ensure essential government services will still be provided in the event of labour conflicts. The legislation—An Act to Give Greater Consideration to the Needs of the Population in the Event of a Strike or a Lockout—aims to prevent disruptions that could negatively impact the population, particularly vulnerable individuals.
The legislation requires that a strike or lockout in progress will continue despite the Administrative Labour Tribunal’s decision to require the parties to maintain services, according to the legislation.
‘Very foundation’ of collective bargaining
Barry Eidlin, vice-president of the Association of McGill Professors of the Faculty of Arts, warned that the law could allow the government to impose service requirements on universities during labour disputes, threatening academic independence.
Eidlin said the legislation is dangerous from a labour relations perspective because it “erodes the very foundation on which collective bargaining occurs in Quebec,” according to the CBC report. He explained that for bargaining to be meaningful, both parties must be on a level playing field, but Bill 89 would tip the balance in favour of employers by removing workers’ ability to collectively withhold their labour.
The legal challenge is supported by the Association of McGill Academic Staff of the School of Continuing Studies, the Association of McGill Professors of the Faculty of Arts, the Association of McGill Professors of Education, and the Association of McGill Professors of Law.
Quebec Labour Minister Jean Boulet’s office declined to comment on the legal action, stating the case is now before the courts, CBC reported.
Unions and opposition parties in Quebec have already come out strongly against the bill, according to The Canadian Press (CP).
"Why is he doing this? I'm not sure that there isn't a little bit of revenge in this,” said Alexandre Leduc, Québec Solidaire's labour critic, accusing Boulet of taking revenge on public sector employees for their large-scale strike in 2023.
