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Caterpillar Announces its Closing Progress Rail Plant in London

by David Doorey February 3, 2012
written by David Doorey February 3, 2012

As rumoured, Caterpillar has decided that to close its London locomotive factory and move production to low wage U.S. (probably Indiana).
So Steven Harper’s poster child for the great benefits of corporate tax cuts–“see how it attracts big American corporations to come to Canada”–is packing up and firing hundreds of Canadian workers.  Funny how the U.S. has become the cheap labour source in the new free trade world, isn’t it.  It’s no coincidence too that the U.S. has by far and away the highest income inequality in the advanced economic world.  A low wage strategy will do that.
I don’t know if the CAW is planning on filing a bad faith bargaining or unfair labour practice complaint to try and obtain greater severance damages.  It does look like Caterpillar had no intention of reaching a collective agreement and staying in London.  If that is the case, then perhaps there is an argument that it engaged in “surface bargaining”–when an employer simply goes through the motions of bargaining without any intention of reaching a deal.  Surface bargaining is unlawful.  On the other hand, Caterpillar would likely argue that it was prepared to enter into a new collective agreement if the workers had agreed to accept that lousy wages  people will work for Indiana.  If that is the case, then the Labour Board could find that this was simply Hard Bargaining, which is lawful.

What do you think?  Do you think it should be illegal for a corporation to propose a 50% pay cut, and then fire everyone and leave the country if the workers don’t agree to it?
Or is that just smart business?

 
 

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David Doorey

Professor Doorey is an Associate Professor of Work Law and Industrial Relations at York University. He is Academic Director of Osgoode Hall Law School’s executive LLM Program in Labour and Employment Law and a Senior Research Associate at Harvard Law School’s Labor and Worklife Program. Professor Doorey is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School (LL.B., Ph.D), London School of Economics (LLM Labour Law), and the University of Toronto (B.A., M.I.R.).

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Law Prof. Talking #labor & #employment #law #Gig to the masses. Alpaca ❤️ @YorkUniversity @OsgoodeNews @LSELaw @LWPHarvard @Jacobin @OnLaborBlog https://t.co/5V9r8VPHsh

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jamesbrad263Brad James@jamesbrad263·
6h

@TheLawofWork @OFLabour Thanks for giving me space on your blog last December to bloviate and whine about this broad topic: https://lawofwork.ca/james_whysoquiet/

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TheLawofWorkDavid J. Doorey🇨🇦@TheLawofWork·
7h

It is rather striking that the @OFLabour is not leading a charge for improved access to collective bargaining.

Emphasizing improved labor standards over collective bargaining rights.

Brad James@jamesbrad263

Private sector union membership is slipping. Ways to address that could include better rights for employees to form unions (as BC has done) or building a broader-based bargaining system for franchise workers. But those aren't in this list of goals from Ontario's union federation. https://twitter.com/OFLabour/status/1559242326391791616

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greenhousenytSteven Greenhouse@greenhousenyt·
21h

Breaking- NLRB says workers at Amazon warehouse in Albany NY area file petition for union election for 400 workers to join Amazon Labor Union

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