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2015 New Labour Trilogy: New CFLR publication on recent Supreme Court decisions

2015 New Labour Trilogy provides analysis and interpretation of the three January 2015 Supreme Court of Canada decisions on labour rights, as well as insights on how they may be applied in current and future Charter litigation involving labour rights.

Ottawa (15 June 2015) — The Canadian Foundation for Labour Rights (CLFR) has released its most recent publication entitled 2015 New Labour Trilogy, a report of the CFLR forum held in Toronto on April 9, 2015 and attended by some 50 prominent trade union lawyers, academics, and activists.

Publication provides summary and analysis of important labour decisions in Canada

The 2015 New Labour Trilogy offers valuable and timely material on the current state of labour rights in Canada. It provides a summary of the three January 2015 Supreme Court of Canada decisions on labour rights, as well as a series of short papers from the presenters summarizing the presentations they gave at the CFLR forum. Each of the presenters provided analysis and interpretation of the decisions, as well as insights on how they may be applied in current and future Charter litigation involving labour rights.

“I’m optimistic these decisions repre­sent the beginning of a more robust and progressive in­terpretation of labour rights by the Courts in Canada,” noted James Clancy, CFLR Board member and National President of the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE).

“If the labour movement hopes to use these decisions to promote, strengthen and expand labour rights in Canada, then it’s critical that we develop a common understanding of their meaning. I believe the 2015 New Labour Trilogy is a valuable contribution to achieving that objective.”

Decisions must be coordinated strategically by labour

CFLR Board member and one of Canada’s most respected labour lawyers, Paul Cavalluzzo was one of the presenters at the Forum. He noted that the Supreme Court decisions were “a great victory for labour.” He cautioned however, that “they must be used strategically and in a coordinated manner in the future.”

“There should be a consensus in the labour movement as to what challenges go forward in the future. The impact of these decisions could be diluted by the wrong case being brought forward in an unconsidered way. This new CFLR publication is a must read for any union considering a future Charter challenge against a bad labour law.”

More information: 

2015 New Labour Trilogy 

The Canadian Foundation for Labour Rights (CFLR) was established in 2010 by the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Canada.

The Foundation is devoted to promoting labour rights as an important means to strengthening democracy, social justice and economic equality here in Canada and internationally. The key objectives the Foundation has established for itself are to create greater public awareness and understanding of the critical role unions play in Canadian society and to build effective political momentum and public support for progressive labour law reform.

NUPGE

The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 360,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE