Statement on Recent BC Greens' Anti-Union Actions
The Green Party of Minnesota strongly opposes recent comments by British Columbia Green Party leader Andrew Weaver, whereby he has vowed to “never support” card check recognition for workers trying to organize a union in Canada.
Card check recognition is when a majority of workers sign cards to certify their desire to form a union, as opposed to the system used in Canada (and most often in the U.S.) where workers vote by secret ballot.
Employers oppose card check because it allows workers to organize without interference from, or intimidation by, their employer. In the U.S., once workers file for an election, they are nearly always subject to an expensive pressure campaign to “vote no” by their employer.
Weaver's comments about workers “feel[ing] pressured to sign” by their coworkers are laughable. There is no comparison to the pressure exerted by employers during anti-union campaigns, which can include mandatory meetings, one-on-one sessions with the boss, and often the employer simply breaking labor law with impunity.
Card-check, which has been proposed in the United States under the Employee Free Choice Act, is not a panacea. It is, however, a tool that should be available to workers seeking to organize.
The Green Party of Minnesota supports the right of working people to form unions without intimidation from their employers. As outlined in the Green Party of Minnesota Platform:
“The Green Party expects our endorsed candidates and elected officials to actively assist working people to form or join labor unions, by advocating legislation to protect workers’ organizing rights, opposing the use of public funds to block organizing efforts, asking employers to maintain neutrality, walking on picket lines, and taking other supportive actions."
We call on the Green Party and its members across North America to oppose Andrew Weaver on this issue, and to strongly urge the B.C. Greens to change this anti-union stance.
B.C. Greens contact page: http://www.bcgreens.ca/contact_us