Issue:

The Government of Alberta has introduced two deeply anti-union bills. These bills were introduced without warning and without consultation. Bills 45 and 46 target public sector wages and the right to collective bargaining and are steps toward Tea Party-Style right to work laws.

Bill 45, or the “Public Sector Services Continuation Act,” infringes on protected rights, such as the right to freely associate and free speech. Under the bill any person could be fined $500 for making a “strike threat” anywhere, any time.

Bill 46, or the “Public Service Salary Restraint Act” would impose a legislated wage freeze on Alberta’s public sector workers. An imposed “wage freeze” would amount to an unfair rollback as public sector workers stand to lose at least 6.1 per cent of their pay cheques to inflation. This legislation is not only uncalled for and unfair, it’s likely unconstitutional.

For more information, please contact Ishani Weera, AFL Organizer at 780.483.3021 or iweera@afl.org