EMPLOYMENT | Enhanced Job Security for Federal Workers.

AuthorBowal, Peter

September 4, 2020By Peter Bowaland Curtis Birch-Lucas

It is an outcome that is anchored in parliamentary intention, statutory language, arbitral jurisprudence, and labour relations practice. To decide otherwise would fundamentally undermine Parliament's remedial purpose. --Wilson v Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., 2016 SCC 29 at para 69 Employment security is something every worker is concerned about, especially during a pandemic. It is generally accepted that unionized workers enjoy more security than their non-unionized counterparts do. And public sector workers are better protected than private sector workers are.

The federal government regulates only about 6% of all Canadian employees. They may be directly working for the federal government or in one of the federally regulated industries such as telecommunications, shipping, aeronautics, railroads, banking and atomic energy.

Most of these federally regulated employees are unionized. But some workers in banks, telecommunications companies, airlines, Crown corporations and other federally controlled employers are non-unionized. In 1978, Parliament amended Part III of the Canada Labour Code to add ss. 240 to 246about "unjust dismissal." These amendments granted unionized federal workers the right to written reasons for dismissal and to complain to an adjudicator if they believe they have been dismissed without just cause. This is an expansion of their collective agreement rights. An adjudicator finding the dismissal unjust can order the worker reinstated or compensated.

This article describes how the Supreme Court of Canada recently decided that these Canada Labour Code extended protections from 1978 apply to non-unionized workers as well. Federally regulated employees without unions and collective agreements share unionized employees' statutory rights.

Wilson v Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd

In 2005, Joseph Wilson began work as a Senior Buyer/Order Administrator for Atomic Energy Canada Limited (AECL), a federally regulated Crown corporation. He was dismissed after more than four years of employment despite having a clean disciplinary record. He claimed he was dismissed because he blew the whistle on improper procurement practices at the company. Mr. Wilson's employer dismissed him without cause and gave him a large severance package. The employer was of the view that it could terminate Wilson at any time without cause since he "was provided a generous severance package that well exceeded the...

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