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Part II - Labour Market Opinion Analysis

13. Labour Dispute

A variety of situations may constitute a labour dispute. These situations, which often arise during collective agreement/contract negotiations between an employer and a union, may include: work stoppage, strikes, refusal to work, picketing, refusal to serve customers, a slowdown of work, demonstrations, withdrawal of services, strategic shutdown of premises, and lockouts.

The existence of a grievance between a union and an employer does not necessarily constitute a labour dispute, since many collective agreements contain provisions that allow their members to submit grievances against their employer to the union, and to have them dealt with in arbitration.

Employers are prohibited from using foreign workers to circumvent a legal work stoppage or to influence the outcome of a labour dispute. Therefore, if the entry of a foreign worker could reasonably be expected to affect the course or the outcome of a labour dispute, a negative labour market opinion must be issued. In this case, the employer would be encourage to apply again once the dispute is resolved.

When assessing a labour market opinion application TFWP officers consider whether:

• The foreign worker would be doing work that would normally be done by a striking employee.
• The foreign worker would be hired to replace a worker who is on strike.
• The entry of the foreign worker would have an adverse affect on the settlement of the labour dispute.

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Date Modified:

2008-12-22