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| Unions - are they about right and wrong? |
| Unions - are they about right and wrong? |
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December 7, 2005 Unions - are they about "right" and "wrong"?  A discussion of "right" and "wrong" is a discussion of morality. Our courts, and Canadians of all political stripes recognize that it is "right" or "good" to have Unions in society. Free democratic and even capitalist social structures are thought to require vibrant union movements to be "free". Recently for example, China has been criticized as a society without freedom, and as a country lacking a free market economy because of its failure to respect the right to free association and to have unions. In the context of this discussion of right and wrong, it is not surprising that those who called to speak of morality often speak of their support for unions. Before the recent settlement in Brooks at Lakeside packers, Bishop Henry of the Catholic Archdiocese of Calgary openly advocated for fairer labour laws in Alberta. There can be no surprise here. The oppression of vulnerable workers demands such commentary and Bishop Henry called upon the Government of Alberta to intervene in the dispute. Bishop Henry and other church leaders have supported 401 members' struggles in the past. During the 1997 Safeway strike, a multi-denominational committee of the Catholic, Jewish, Anglican and United Church supported the Safeway Boycott. Unions are legitimate and important institutions. A just society includes respect for unions. Bishop Henry once wrote as follows in the Western Catholic Reporter: "On its social teaching, the Catholic Church firmly maintains that labour unions have an essential role to play in preventing the violation of the dignity of human-work and serving as a 'mouthpiece for the struggle for social justice.' Without unions, working people have no collective voice in our industrialized society. Through labour unions, workers are able to strive for just wages, decent working conditions, appropriate social benefits and a democratic voice in the workplace. Through labour unions, workers are also able to press for changes in public policy and to participate in a broader social movement to build a just society. In effect, the Church maintains labour unions are an 'indispensable element of social life' For these reason, Church teaching encourages Catholic workers to become actively involved in their own unions and urges the Catholic community as a whole to support the essential role that labour unions have to play in society.  In the words of Pope John Paul: " In the interests of the common good of the whole of society, union demands?..can and should seek the correction of all those elements which are harmful in the ownership of the means of production or in the way they are directed and administered. Social and socio-economic life is like a system of interconnected vessels?.It is in this respect that the activity of unions undoubtedly enters the area of politics, understand as the prudent care of the common good." It is important to remind ourselves of the history of the labour movement in Canada and its contribution to building a more just society. Along with other community organizations, labour unions have been a major factor I promoting some of the most progressive social legislation in the country, including Medicare, social housing, unemployment insurance, health and safety regulations, and consumer protection measures. In so doing, they have played an important role in enhancing the social and economic rights of workers and of the poor and defenseless in our society." |
