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The General Election and Canada Elections Act
Issue 4 - 2008
 As this Journal goes to press,
union members in Canada, like
their counterparts to the south,
are gearing up for a “make or break”
Federal Election on October 14th, when
voters will go to the polls to elect the
Canadian House of Commons of the
40th Canadian Parliament. The minority
Conservative government has yet again
called an election to attempt to gain a
majority, illustrating that this election is
less about what is good for Canadians
and Canadian workers than it is about
amassing greater political power.
This is the first federal election since
significant changes to the Canada
Elections Act went into effect in January
2007. Therefore “it’s important for our
members to be aware of how the changes
affect BAC and the labour movement,”
said IU President John J. Flynn.
Under the new provisions, an affiliate of a
building trades organization, which applies
to BAC Local Unions, cannot make
political contributions during or leading
up to a federal election. The amended Act
prohibits corporations, trade unions and
groups from donating to political parties,
candidates or leadership contestants,
allowing only individual Canadian citizens
or permanent residents to do so.
Traditional political activities undertaken
in the past by many Locals, such as
phone banking on behalf of candidates
and providing campaign workers during
regular business hours, are also prohibited
under the new Act. Union members
who wish to work on a candidate’s
campaign must do so on their own time
outside of business hours, or take unpaid
leave to work on a volunteer basis.
While these changes have dampened
labour’s capacity to organize at the grassroots
level on behalf of labour-friendly
MPs, IU Regional Director – Canada
Fred Vautour remained optimistic. “BAC
is fortunate to have many politically active members,” said Vautour. “In view
of Prime Minister Harper’s poor record
on workers’ rights, we’re expecting an
especially strong turnout in support of
candidates who share the priorities of
workers and their families. A majority
Conservative government would do
irreparable harm to union members and
unions, which have historically benefited
most under minority governments.”
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