Certosimo talks unionization in Canada and how to foster a union-friendly environment
Is the Canadian workforce really changing? Is union organizing on the rise? Matthew Certosimo, partner at Borden Ladner Gervais in Toronto, sat down with Emily Douglas of HRD Talk to answer the question.
“Yes and no,” Certosimo said. “Some of what we're seeing is properly characterized as Back to the Future … a variation on old themes.”
Labour and union relations have swung back and forth on a pendulum from worker to employer friendly legislation over the years, Certosimo explained, as different governments were in power. But at the core of the employment relationship is the “notion of control,” he said, which was drastically altered during the pandemic in several ways, one of which being the shift to remote and hybrid work.
This “historic intersection between significant developments in technology and the necessity of isolation” led to the dramatic expansion of remote work, Certosimo told HRD Talk – which was considered taboo or a special exception pre-pandemic.
“Now that workers have had that opportunity, there's tension over a return to work and hybrid work,” he continued, explaining that the power employers once had to directly control the quality and amount of work employees did, is no longer relevant when workers are remote.”
Working-from-home has even become a point of negotiation at union labour bargaining tables, Certosimo said, and union certifications are on the rise.
To hear the full interview and much more about unionization in Canada, tune in to HRD Talk podcast series.
