Deck 14: Key Themes and Issues

Question 1

A lack of job security and benefits is common to

A)part- time employment.
B)self- employment.
C)temporary employment.
D)contract employment.
E)most forms of non- standard employment.

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Why is the situation for Canadian unions perhaps worse than the country's relatively stable membership rates would suggest?

Answer 2

A number of reasons,among them declining private sector membership,loss of rights in the public sector,and an overall trend toward reduced employment in the public sector,which has much higher membership rates than the private sector.In the longer term,another factor which should be of concern is the continued weakness of the NDP,the labour movement's long- time political partner.

Question 3

Federal and provincial governments' style in labour- management relations with their own employees could best be described as

A)handy and efficient.
B)heavy- handed.
C)innovative.
D)hands- off.
E)indifferent.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

In December,2001,the Supreme Court of Canada struck down Ontario's longstanding exclusion of which group of workers from unionization rights,on Charter grounds?

A)farmworkers
B)engineers
C)domestics
D)IR professors
E)lawyers

Question 5

Skills shortages are likely to be especially severe in

A)coal mining.
B)insurance sales.
C)postal clerical work.
D)nursing.
E)steel- making.

Question 6

How did Canada's conflict resolution system become so overloaded?

Question 7

By 2017,the percentage of Canada's population who are immigrants is expected to be .

A)10%
B)22%
C)17%
D)29%
E)36%

Question 8

What's the main reason why union certification rates are lower in the U.S.,where votes are required,than in those Canadian jurisdictions which have continued to use a card count?

A)There's less chance for unions to exercise peer pressure in their favour.
B)Employers can influence the voting process in their favour.
C)Unions don't like votes.
D)None of the above.
E)All of the above.

Question 9

Canada's approach to highly- trained immigrant workers can best be summed up as

A)barely welcoming.
B)outrightly hostile.
C)indifferent.
D)highly welcoming.
E)tolerant.

Question 10

What are the causes of tha lack of meaningful worker representation?

Question 11

All but which one of the following policy suggestions could reduce overtime,thereby creating or saving jobs?

A)set strict limits on the number of hours that must be worked before a labour ministry permit is required
B)give all workers the right to refuse overtime
C)reduce the number of hours that must be worked before overtime premiums must be paid
D)decrease the amount of annual income subject to EI and CPP premiums
E)increase premiums payable for overtime work

Question 12

Why would many argue that the federal government is sending the wrong signal by hiring only about 10% of new staff on indeterminate i.e.,permanent)appointments?

Question 13

A sign of the increased precariousness of work in Canada has been

A)growth in part- time,at the expense of full- time work.
B)collapse of the dot.com firms.
C)declining pension entitlements.
D)skills shortages.
E)reduction in "Workopolis" ads on buses.

Question 14

Only the following province from this group of five)still allows union certification on the basis of a card count:

A)Nova Scotia.
B)British Columbia.
C)Quebec.
D)Newfoundland.
E)Ontario.

Question 15

What's perhaps the one bright spot on the legislative horizon for unions?

Question 16

All but which one of the following has been identified as a cause of increased labour- management friction in the federal public service?

A)restrictive legislative framework for public service labour relations
B)the government's low wage offers,at a time when MPs had just voted themselves a big raise
C)tough union tactics
D)government imposition of back- to- work legislation
E)suppression of arbitration for ten years

Question 17

All but which one of the following is a sign of the impending demographic crisis?

A)skills shortages
B)potential overall shortage of workers
C)lack of jobs for young people
D)strain on the public pension and health care systems
E)overload on families

Question 18

The most significant factor contributing to the lack of meaningful worker representation in Canada is

A)proliferation of non- standard employment.
B)restricting certain groups of workers from unionizing.
C)restricting public sector bargaining rights.
D)private sector employer intimidation.
E)restrictive union organizing legislation.

Question 19

A potential benefit of experience- rating EI premiums is that

A)it would encourage firms to go in for constructive dismissals.
B)this would increase the amount of premiums taken in.
C)it would encourage firms to find ways other than layoffs to cut costs.
D)it would reduce premiums for firms with larger numbers of experienced workers.
E)none of the above.

Question 20

"One stop shopping plaza" refers to

A)the different conflict resolution procedures available in the private sector.
B)expanded role of arbitration in resolving workplace disputes.
C)the different conflict resolution procedures available in the public sector.
D)reduced role of arbitration in resolving workplace disputes.
E)availability of many unions in choosing one for a membership drive.

Question 21

Canada's great need for highly- trained immigrants is matched by programs to recognize their credentials and have them enter the workforce as quickly as possible.

Question 22

The defeat of Ontario's conservative government in 2003 saw a radical shift in labour relations legislation.

Question 23

Public sector labour relations is improving greatly in both the federal and provincial sectors.

Question 24

Arbitration is becoming narrower in scope as related to workplace disputes.

Question 25

The Dunmore certainly advances the right to join unions significantly.

Question 26

Skills shortages are likely to be more severe in the private than in the public sector.

Question 27

Immigrants with graduate degrees are as likely to be employed as native- born Canadians with graduate degrees.

Question 28

Impending retirements could help tilt the balance of workplace power back toward workers.

Question 29

Why are skill shortages likely to be particularly severe in the public sector?

Question 30

Governments have eased restrictions on public sector workers' bargaining rights as t he economy has improved.

Question 31

What advantages would there be in Canada extending the Dunmore decision to allow agricultural workers not only to have legal representation before their employers,but to bargain collectively and strike?

Question 32

Women can bear the stresses of non- standard employment better then men.

Question 33

Meaningful representation of workers is not of significant concern for future labour relations.

Question 34

Why does the aging of the labour force pose a threat to the public pension system?

Question 35

Women have now achieved equality in regards to pension benefits.

Question 36

All non- standard employment is poorly paid.

Question 37

Canada has a poor record when it comes to recognizing the credentials of highly- trained immigrants.

Question 38

What pressures have forced Canadian employers to increasing use non- standard employment?

Question 39

Why are employer freedom to communicate provisions in labour relations acts of considerable concern?

Question 40

Mandatory retirement policies are likely to be good for the Canadian economy in the years ahead.

Question 41

"Unions need to expand their range of organizing strategies and their role if they are to maintain their strength in the current environment."

Question 42

Of the policy shifts and proposals for action summarized in Figure 14.3,choose the one you think should be a priority.Justify your answer.

Question 43

Discuss some additional themes that might have been chosen.

Question 44

"Doing away with mandatory retirement will be key to solving the problem of skills shortages."

Question 45

How can the situation of non- standard employees be improved?

Question 46

Of the suggestions for future research Figure 14.4)choose the one you think should be a priority.Justify your answer.

Question 47

Given the long- term nature of demographic situations,there is little or nothing government can do.Discuss.