Skip to Content

CAALL — Canadian Association of Administrators of Labour Legislation

Home > CAALL Structure > Standing Committees:

Research and Policy

2004-2005 Annual Report

CAALL RESEARCH AND POLICY COMMITTEE ANNUAL MEETING

The Research and Policy Committee (CAALL-RPC) met in Quebec City, Quebec, on June 22-23, 2005 for the Committee's annual meeting. During the first day of the meeting (June 22), the Committee discussed the progress of the New Employment Relationships Project and expectations for completing it (i.e. developing a detailed workplan for completing the project). During the second day of the meeting (June 23), the Committee was updated on the Labour Jurisdictions Information Exchange, representatives engaged in a jurisdictional roundtable, and several potential topics of interest were identified for the 2006 Ministers of Labour meeting. The Committee confirmed its workplan and selected Peter Ogrodnik (Manitoba) to continue as the Committee's Chair. Nova Scotia was selected to host the Committee's 2006 annual meeting in Halifax (to be confirmed by Nova Scotia).

Back to top ^^

NEW EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIPS PROJECT

The New Employment Relationships Project is a seven-phase, two-year project to study non-standard, contingent employment in Canada and its implications for policy. A working group (Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, Manitoba, Federal Government) was created to develop the materials and methods that were used by jurisdictions in completing the phases. During the past year, the Committee completed phases II, III and IV of the project. The Committee also extended an invitation to the CAALL Women in Employment Committee to participate in the project if they are able to contribute.

  1. Phase II — This phase involved a comparative analysis of the demographic characteristics of contingent workers in the 14 occupations that were selected during the first phase of the project. The factors considered for each occupation included the age, gender, and educational levels of contingent workers and whether there were any significant regional variances. Ontario and the Federal Government took the lead for this phase. Data from Statistics Canada was purchased and distributed to jurisdictions, along with a template and a spreadsheet developed by Quebec to guide them in interpreting and analyzing the data.
  2. Phase III and IV — The purpose of these phases was to determine the extent that labour legislation and programs/benefits apply to the 14 selected occupations and to contingent workers generally. Manitoba took the lead for this stage of the project. Jurisdictions completed a survey of their legislation in the areas of labour standards, labour relations, occupational safety and health, and workers compensation. In addition, Quebec and the Federal Government filled out a similar survey regarding programs and benefits. A 2002 CAALL Women in Employment Committee report on contingent workers' coverage was also used during this phase.

The Committee drafted an interim report of findings and results from phases I, II, and III for the Spring CAALL meeting in May, 2005. A request for funding for focus group research as part of phase V was denied by CAALL due to the high cost of conducting the focus groups and uncertainty over whether the results would justify the expense. However, CAALL agreed to a request for additional funding to purchase survey data from Statistics Canada to complete phase V of the project.

At the June 2005 annual meeting, the Committee drafted a workplan to complete the New Employment Relationships Project by the first quarter of, in 2006. Proposed activities and outcomes include:

Back to top ^^

LABOUR JURISDICTION INFORMATION EXCHANGE (LJIE) PROJECT

The purpose of this project is to maintain, review and update the LJIE on an ongoing basis. Saskatchewan is the lead jurisdiction on the project. This file was relatively quiet over the year as attention was focused on the New Employment Relationships Project. At the June 2005 annual meeting, it was agreed that a conference call should be held to discuss the role and purpose of the LJIE in the context of changes being made to the CAALL website.

Back to top ^^

POTENTIAL ITEMS OF INTEREST FOR MINISTERS OF LABOUR MEETING

During the June 2005 annual meeting, the Committee discussed a number of potential items of interest for discussion at the upcoming Ministers of Labour meeting in January 2006, as requested by the CAALL Secretariat. Potential topics agreed upon by the Committee include:

  1. The costs of poor employer-employee relations in the context of healthy workplaces, workplace wellness, and labour productivity. The discussion would build on and continue the presentation on workplace wellness to Ministers of Labour during the January 2005 meeting:
    • What is the cost of 'sick' workplaces for productivity (e.g. stress as a contributor to illness/absenteeism)? How can profile of this issue be raised and linked to the bottom line of productivity?
    • Workplace wellness initiatives are often driven by employer retention strategies to retain valued employees while accommodating the employer's desire for flexibility. Is there a divide between higher-skilled and lower-skilled workers in terms of access to healthy workplaces? Is the changing nature of workplaces a factor affecting workplace wellness?
    • What is, or can be, the role of governments in addressing/promoting workplace wellness and work-life balance? How are other countries dealing with the business, health and social costs of work-life conflict?
  2. What role does CAALL and labour departments have in the debate on 'smart regulations' (e.g. the Federal Government's regulatory strategy initiative to improve ways to protect the public while making the regulatory system less complex, more responsive and effective through cooperative approaches between government, industry, and other stakeholders)?
  3. Discussion on the aging workforce and how to accommodate older workers, including the future of pension plans.
  4. Addressing skills shortages through immigration strategies, focusing on the recruitment and retention of skilled workers, including credentials recognition.
  5. Discussion on low-wage earners and the low-wage economy. Within many organizations, the changing nature of work and employer demands for flexibility has resulted in two categories of workers - full-time 'core' workers and temporary, lower-paid 'peripheral' workers. What should be the role of governments to help peripheral workers with regard to better working conditions?
Back to top ^^