Brave New Words: Labour, The Courts and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

In Health Services and Support – Facilities Subsector BargainingAssociation v. British Columbia, [2007] 2 S.C.R.391, the Supreme Court of Canada overturned precedent andconcluded “that the grounds advanced in the earlier decisions forthe exclusion of collective bargaining from the Charter’s protectionof freedom of association do not withstand principled scrutinyand should be rejected” (at para. 22). The author exploresthe Supreme Court of Canada’s change of heart and what thischange implies, not only for constitutional doctrine, but also forwhat the Court understands about the governance of the post-Fordist world of work. She situates the Court’s reasoning in afew key cases dealing with labour’s distinctive rights – to bargaincollectively and to strike – in the social context that both shapesthe legal discourse about labour rights and influences organizedlabour’s power. She considers the paradox of the Supreme Court’sembrace of Fordist labour rights in a post-Fordist economy, andsuggests a modest, though important, role that the Court couldplay in fostering social justice in the brave new world of work.

Brave New Words: Labour, The Courts and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms Journal Articles