Labour Law conference explores rights at work
December 02, 2013
Supreme Court of Canada Justice Thomas Cromwell headlined a major gathering on labour rights at Western Law, as he delivered the 8th Koskie Minsky University Lecture on Labour Law on 25 October. Mr. Justice Cromwell (pictured right) spoke on the elements of workplace rights recognized in Canadian law and under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and addressed the importance of recognizing these rights as part of a fair society. He pointed to the contributions that labour law has made to strengthening democratic voices in the workplace, and ensuring better business practices.
The following day, Western Law hosted the 8th Heenan Blaikie University Conference on Labour Law, with four panels devoted to exploring the theme of “Rights at Work”. The topics explored by the various speakers ranged from the source of workplace rights to the development of employment rights under the Charter, to the rapidly evolving changes to human rights in the workplace.
Among the specific topics discussed were privacy rights at work, the vulnerable state of workers with disabilities, the contribution of international labour law to understanding constitutional rights in Canada, and the relationship between the Charter and human rights statutes in advancing anti-discrimination programs at work.
Nathalie des Rosiers, Dean of Common Law at the University of Ottawa and a former faculty member at Western Law, gave a moving keynote speech at the conference luncheon. She emphasized the place of labour law rights as a cornerstone marker of our democratic freedoms, and wondered why the freedom of association guarantee in s. 2(d) of the Charter was given a diminished interpretation when compared to the freedom of speech guarantees found in s. 2(b).
The Lecture and Conference were attended by 160 people, including practising lawyers, academics, ordinary union members, industrial relations executives and a number of law students.
“This was a rich intellectual feast,” said Professor Michael Lynk, one of the co-organizers of the weekend. “The Lecture and Conference contributes to a richer scholarship on the Canadian workplace, builds a stronger relationship between the academy and the practising bar, and enthuses our students with an real interest in a dynamic area of law.”
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