Canadian labour and employment law

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Canadian labour law is that body of law which regulates the rights, restrictions obligations of trade unions, workers and employers in Canada. Canadian employment law is that body of law which regulates the rights, restrictions obligations of non-unioned workers and employers in Canada.

Authority over labour and employment law is divided between the provinces and the federal government. The Federal Labour Code governs in those sectors where the constitution gives regulatory powers to the central government. As for example in interprovincial transportation or communications.

In areas of unrestricted provincial jurisdiction, each province (and increasingly each territory) is empowered. So, for example, education and municpal government are both subject to provincial legislation (the territories excepted).

While Quebec's statutory environment is considerably different in many respects, most provinces and the federal Code all follow the American standard of enterprise-based bargaining structures. They also share a certification process (the details of which differ somewhat from province to province) through which unions are recognized by the state as having the support of a majority of workers in a narrowly-defined workplace.