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Canada is one of the few nations in the free world that requires employees to pay union dues whether or not they wish to join the union. The European Union, Sweden, the UK and the U.S. have all decided that it is a basic human right for employees to decide themselves whether to join a union. This is not the case here.

The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that employees in Canada must pay union dues, and further, that unions may use these compulsory union dues, which are not taxed, at the unions’ discretion, for other than work place purposes. As a result, millions and millions of dollars of union dues have been used by the unions to fund left-wing groups and projects which are anti-life and anti-family. For example, in September 2006 when the Conservative government cut off funding by the Status of Women for advocacy (lobbying) and so-called “research” for feminist groups, the unions stepped in to assist these feminists.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) donated $100,000 and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) donated $25,000 to be divided equally among four national women’s organizations:

the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women (CRIAW);
the Child Care Advocacy Association of Canada;
the National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL); and
the Feminist Association for International Action (FAFIA).

PSAC is also contributing $15,000 to the Federation des Femmes du Quebec, the key women’s “equality” organization in Quebec. The Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF) has committed $30,000 to the four national organizations as well as to the Ontario Association of Transition and Interval Houses and the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care.

Unions in Canada have become very wealthy institutions in their own right with billions of dollars invested abroad as well as in Canada ­ again to be used for their own purposes ­ all financed by the tax free compulsory union dues.

Unions are not required to account publicly for their spending of this money, nor disclose the salaries of their leaders and their many perks. It is a free for all for union leaders in Canada.

Because these compulsory union dues have been used to further abortion on demand (including Mortgentaler’s many court challenges), same-sex marriage, and other issues so destructive of family life, REAL Women has taken a keen interest in the labour movement in Canada.

In this regard, we have recently completed an in-depth analysis of the labour movement in Canada. The paper, however, is too long to be included in our newsletter REALity. However, the paper has now been posted on our website, The Tyranny of Labour Unions in Canada, for those interested in reading it. If you do not have access to the internet, please contact our National Office and they will be pleased to forward a copy of this paper to you for only a nominal fee to cover photocopying and mailing expenses.

Although unions are important for collective bargaining purposes and work place issues, they should not be entitled to use the compulsory union dues for non-work place issues, nor should employees be compelled to pay union dues if they choose not to do so. Unions have far too much power and influence in Canada and this must be curtailed.

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