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The Law of Work
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Collective Bargaining in the Auto Sector: No Easy Answers

by David Doorey September 28, 2009
written by David Doorey September 28, 2009

Go to fullsize image There’s a story in the Globe & Mail today that demonstrates the difficulty the Canadian Auto Workers are having trying to bargain collective agreements in the current economic climate.  It involves the negotiations with Ford Canada.  The company wants some serious concessions (cuts to labour costs), but at the same time, won’t promise to actually keep producing cars and trucks in Canada beyond a couple of years.  The union says it would agree to concessions, but wants some sort of commitment from Ford that it will not keep cutting its Canadian production.  
Trouble is, if Ford says no to that trade off, what can the workers do?  They can strike when the time comes, but that’s a gamble, given that Ford is already saying that the Canadian operations are too costly.  Ford could feasibly respond to a strike by moving the work elsewhere.  But should the workers just keep giving up their wages and benefits in the hope that Ford will stick around in the long run?
What would you do if you were a Ford worker?  Agree to a large cut in your pay and benefits in the hope that you still have a job a few years from now, or refuse concessions, keep your pay and benefits for as a long as you can, and hope that Ford doesn’t lay you off?

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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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If you missed my ⁦@RMIT⁩ lecture on Tuesday here is the text with a recording to follow … Legislating to Rebuild Worker Power: The Industrial Relations Reforms We Need from the Albanese Labor Government - Labour Law Down Under ⁦⁦@RMITCoBL⁩ https://labourlawdownunder.com.au/?p=1042

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TheLawofWorkDavid J. Doorey🇨🇦@TheLawofWork·
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Old law school friend now works as a lawyer in the Office of the JAG. She is doing basic training, getting crazy fit. I wasn’t aware these lawyers must basically go thru basic training.

Imagine if there was a fitness test for labour and employment lawyers?

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TheLawofWorkDavid J. Doorey🇨🇦@TheLawofWork·
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You’ve seen this article?

Adrienne Cuoto, ‘Clothing Exotic Dancers with Collective Bargaining Rights’, 2006 38-1 Ottawa Law Review 37, 2006 CanLIIDocs 63, <https://canlii.ca/t/2913>

ryan white@ryandwhite12

One of my COVID projects has been working on a history of the Canadian Association of Burlesque Entertainers, the only case I am aware of in which dancers sought unionization in Canada - so I will be watching this carefully (it is rare and exciting) https://twitter.com/grimkim/status/1559995539999031297

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