23 Feb 2009

What role should unions play in political and international issues?

The Supreme Court ruled in Lavigne v. Ontario Public Service Employees Union that unions could adopt positions and spend union dues on political campaigns that were not directly related to collective bargaining (and also recognized the right of unions members to disagree with their union's position).

FNEEQ, our union federation, and its parent organization, the CSN, have at times taken political positions that many of our members do not agree with (e.g. supporting Quebec sovereignty and the Palestinian people). The JACFA Executive has for many years taken the position not to take sides on such divisive issues, as we do not believe that this will strengthen our union's solidarity at a time when we need to be working together.

What do you think?