The leader of the New Brunswick NDP says he wants the province’s labour laws amended to make “contract flipping” illegal.
Party leader Alex White, who is running to become MLA of Bathurst East-Nepisiguit-Saint-Isidore, said the practice is immoral and should be illegal.
If elected to the provincial legislature, he is looking to bring forward legislation to make contract flipping illegal in New Brunswick.
“Contract flipping often affects the lowest paid and most vulnerable workers in our province’s workforce,” said White.
“An employer cannot negotiate away a unionized worker’s contract.”
Contract flipping is a term that refers to a practice where contracted employees unionize, only to be replaced by a non-unionized company.
His proposal comes after unionized custodians at St. Thomas University were laid off in 2020, while food service workers at the University of New Brunswick received layoff notices in March.
White said his proposed legislation would ensure union contracts automatically carry over if private firms or public institutions seek new providers to outsource service work.
“Such a measure should already be part of our labour legislation, and it is shameful that we allow this to happen,” he said.