Strikes & Essential Services Agreements

Essential services are services which the interruption of would endanger the life, personal safety or health of the public; or, that are necessary to the maintenance and administration of the rule of law and public security.

Employers and unions negotiate essential services agreements (ESAs), determining which services and workers are to be considered essential, rather than having the government impose something from above. If parties cannot agree on the terms of the ESA, the negotiations can be facilitated by an umpire. The Essential Services Commissioner will ultimately ensure that the negotiated agreement complies with the standard set out in the legislation. HSAA is currently in the process of negotiating essential services agreements with AHS and our other Employers.

HSAA is currently negotiating with AHS and our other Employers to determine essential staffing service levels. However, private rural ambulance services are being classified as essential under the new law because their bargaining units are much smaller.

Writing for the University of Alberta’s Parkland Institute’s blog, Dr. Bob Barnetson, a professor of labour relations at Athabasca University, says that, “while it will be easier for public-sector workers to strike (since it is no longer illegal), it is unlikely that we’ll see a huge increase in public-sector strikes and lockouts… strikes and lockouts entail significant financial and reputation risks for both sides. This compels unions and employers to grapple with whether the costs of a strike or lockout is really worth the potential gains. “Typically, this dynamic heightens the willingness to compromise by both sides. That is to say, the threat of conflict often reduces the likelihood of it actually happening.”

A replacement worker is a person, paid or not, who is hired by the employer or supplied to the employer by another person for the purpose of performing work done by bargaining-unit members who are on strike or locked out. You may have heard them referred to as “scabs.”

No. It is important that all members understand that members will be scheduled to work and that they must comply with that, they do not have an option. As one person put it; their heart is on the line with their co-workers but their head and hands have to be at work.

Some employers have always had the right to strike and that has not changed with the new ESA legislation, so if collective bargaining reaches and impasse, job action can be pursues without an ESA.

Yes. For example, the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) at sites that are contracted to AHS do not have the right to strike. If they are unable to get a collective agreement, they cannot go on strike and an impasse in bargaining would be resolved through binding Interest Arbitration.

HSAA staff will work with your Local Unit Executive to support the needs of the membership during any job action, whether it be a strike or lockout. And, of course, we would anticipate support from other unions.