The Gathering Storm in Canada: BC Public Sector Strike Looms

After years of labour strife in British Columbia, the stage is being set for a decisive showdown. Premier Gordon Campbell’s attacks have been met with stiff resistance from the labour movement over the last five years. Each battle has taken on an increasingly militant character. The UBC TAs were the first to defy back to work legislation. They were followed by the ferry workers who also ignored their back-to-work order. The Hospital Employees’ Union increased the intensity with spontaneous province-wide solidarity strike action in both the public and private sector. The BC Teachers’ Federation strike last fall took the movement to a whole new level with a rolling general strike, the first of which shut down the Capital city of British Columbia as fifty thousand rallied on the legislature lawn. But all of these strikes may pale in comparison to the coming battle of the public sector.

The Dress Rehearsal

Last fall’s strike of the BC Teachers’ Federation sent shockwaves through British Columbia. Finally, the leadership of a major union had drawn a real line in the sand. The membership had learned the lessons of past strikes and passed resolutions not only to defy their legislated contract, but to stay out until they had voted to accept a new deal. This was a direct response to the betrayal of the HEU strike when workers were forced to take a 15% wage cut and had no opportunity to vote on the contract.

The militancy of the leadership of the Teachers’ Federation acted as a lightning rod to the workers of British Columbia. The dispute was mainly about class sizes, which affect not only working conditions for teachers but also the quality of the education of our children. Public support swung massively behind the Teachers and when government legislated a contract that didn’t deal with any of the issues, the anger reached a boiling point.

The labour movement rallied around the teachers as years of pent up anger at the BC Liberals found its expression. The result was one of the most militant strikes in the history of the province. In a matter of days, tens of thousands of workers were mobilized and Victoria was brought to its knees. Picket lines went up at every union shop in the city. In some places workers simply set up picket lines around entire city blocks instead of picketing each office individually. The demonstration in Victoria was an awe-inspiring sight that showed the real power of the working class in British Columbia.

But despite this fantastic show of force, there was no final conclusion. The strike didn’t end with a decisive victory for either side, but rather a compromise that would end the uncomfortable situation. Since the agreement was made there has been no progress on any of the major issues. “We have hundreds of thousands of students in overcrowded

classrooms," BCTF President Jinny Sims said in an interview in early February. "On top of that, we have an extraordinary number of students with special needs in innumerable classes without the required support” (10 Feb. www.newswire.ca). In reality, the legislation only deferred the issue until the end of the school year in June.

The Coming Battle

Most of British Columbia’s public sector contracts will end on March 31. 40,000 members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees are heading to the bargaining table. 25,000 members of the BC Government and Service Employees’ Union have just voted 80% in favour of strike action. And the contract for 45,000 members of the BC Teachers’ Federation, which was extended by Bill 12, will expire in June. Add to this the BC Nurses’ Union and the Hospital Employees’ Union who are entering negotiations and almost the entire public sector is involved. With the government demanding concessions and the labour movement demanding improvements there seems to be no way out of the impasse without a showdown.

The major issue for the public sector is job security. The Liberal government wants to continue their agenda of privatizing public services and laying off massive numbers of public employees. But public sector workers have also been subjected to a wage freeze for three years. Now that the government has a large surplus, continued austerity measures are absolutely unjustifiable, but the government is refusing to move.

“We said at the outset of these negotiations that any settlement had to include stronger job security for the thousands of women and men who deliver critical public services day in and day out in communities around this province,” BCGEU president George Heyman said, announcing that his members were taking a strike vote.

“We warned the government that we will fight any attempt to weaken our members’ rights in this area. Our members, the public, and the future of the public service depend on it. After four weeks at the table, so far those words have fallen on deaf ears."

He continued, “Clearly, it’s going to take more pressure for the government to take our members’ proposals seriously. We are reporting back to our members and asking them to send a strong, clear message to the government: hands off our jobs” (12 Feb. www.nupge.ca).

Government Bribes

The government is clearly worried about the developing situation. They have announced that unions that reach an agreement before their contracts expire will receive a large one-time bonus equal to roughly $3,300 per member. This amounts to a massive bribe. They’re hoping to buy the votes of workers who have been feeling the strain in their wallets from several years of austerity measures. But the government is demanding major concessions in job security language and their bribery attempt is clearly not working. The president of the BCGEU compared this to a carrot on a stick.

The government has set aside a mere 6 billion dollars over the next four years to improve public sector workers’ contracts and a billion of that will be taken away if they don’t settle before the end of March. After years of imposed wage freezes, this is only a drop in the bucket. But even if the government was offering decent raises, what good is money when they are planning to eliminate your job? CUPE BC President Barry O’Neill said, "Money is important, for sure, but the government needs to know that unless it is also prepared to discuss serious concerns our members have about workplace issues, there won't be much progress. CUPE negotiators will do everything possible to meet the government's deadline, but they'd better not bring concessions to the table. We're bargaining from our agenda this time” (29 Jan. www.newswire.ca).

The BC Teachers’ Federation is once again demanding action on class sizes from the government. They have learned exactly what the word of the Premiere is worth and are mobilizing their membership and the general public. "If the government fails to enshrine class size and composition provisions into the School Act in the spring sitting, teachers, students, and parents will see that as a betrayal," said Jinny Sims, BCTF president. "Our teachers won't wait another year, because our students can't wait” (10 Feb. www.newswire.ca).

Historic Struggle

The coming battle of the public sector is more important than any of the previous ones. There is much more at stake than the contracts of public sector workers. This will be a fight about the right to collective bargaining in general. Each time public sector workers have gone on strike they have been met with legislation ordering them back to work; this time will be no different. This government has proven they have no problem removing the right to strike from whoever tries to fight back. This fight is therefore a fight for the right to collective bargaining.

Many people take their employment rights for granted, but all of the freedoms we enjoy today came from hard-fought struggles in the past. Many people before us put their blood sweat and tears into fighting for a better future; indeed some even died for the right to strike. It wasn’t long ago that “calling a man a scab” or “conspiring to raise wages” were jailable offences in Canada. The capitalists of today and their representatives in the legislature would be perfectly happy to have those days return. The only thing stopping them is the firestorm that would be unleashed by the labour movement.

We must expect the government to legislate contracts and remove the right to strike again. The only way to win a fair contract and defend the right to strike is to defy this legislation when it comes. The rank and file members have shown that they are willing and able to go as far as it takes to stop the conservative agenda. And the rest of the labour movement has demonstrated their willingness to stand up in solidarity with workers under attack from the government. If the leaders of the labour movement are to lead this struggle to victory, they need to begin preparing their members and the general public for just such a battle. They must bluntly tell the government that they will not accept any more unjust legislation and any attempt to shut down the labour movement will be met with resistance.

The Role of the NDP

The New Democratic Party is the party of organized labour in British Columbia. If a major confrontation between the BC Liberals and the labour movement takes place, it will define the remainder of the government’s term in office. A victory for the public sector would be a crushing defeat for the Campbell government and would pave the way for an NDP victory. Under certain circumstances, the government could even be forced to call a snap election to decide the issue. But a defeat would be a crushing blow for labour. It could be the final battle of the anti-Campbell movement, temporarily demoralizing the labour movement and dashing any hopes for an NDP government in the near future. The interests of the New Democratic Party and the labour movement cannot be separated.

The NDP caucus must give unconditional support to the struggle of the public sector workers. Every effort should be made to fight back-to-work orders in the legislature, but this can only be seen as a supplement to the movement; the motive force will be the workers on the picket lines. It is not enough for New Democrats to simply support this movement; they must be part of it. NDP members of the legislative assembly should act as the voice of the mass movement in parliament. The workers have shown their willingness to fight and win not one, but ten struggles. All they need is a leadership that reflects the wishes of the rank-and-file and does not flinch when the going gets tough.

The government is planning a major offensive on the rights of working people. In order to carry through their agenda, they must first smash the only real opposition: the labour movement. An injury to one is an injury to all. The entire labour movement must unite to defend the public sector workers and the right to strike. The coming dispute will affect much more than just public sector workers. This is a fight for the future of our province.

Victory to the Public Sector Workers!

Defend the Right to Strike!

Stop Campbell!