Introduction

I was surprised to read an article from Kiri Vadivelu (December 31, 2024, “No to Legislative Strikebreaking! Victory to Postal Workers!”) in The Red Review, a “Socialist Action journal.” [Socialist Action is an allegedly socialist organization]. Vadivelu was a candidate for mayor in the last municipal elections in Toronto–and I voted for him since he seemed to express some of the views that I share.

Idealization of the Social-Democratic or Social-Reformist Slogan “Fair Wages”

For this reason, I was surprised to read his article on the recent postal workers strike in Canada by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) and the federal government’s forcing the workers back to work. I certainly agree that such a move by the federal government should be criticized, but this hardly justifies Vadivelu’s implicit idealization of  his use of the social-democratic slogan “fair wages”:

By weakening CUPW, Ettinger [CEO of Canada Post] is attacking the very bench  mark CUPW sets for fair wages in the entire delivery sector. This is nothing short of class warfare….

Postal workers set the benchmark for fair wages and rights in this industry. Attacking our union isn’t just an attack on CUPW—it’s an attack on every logistics worker in Canada.

Historically, CUPW was a militant union. As a consequence of Vadivelu’s use of this trade-union cliche, I decided to see whether CUPW used this social-reformist or social-democratic cliche as well (or its equivalent, such as “fair compensation”). Indeed, it does (see ???). Such cliches need to be persistently criticized by socialists.

This post continues by providing evidence that, like CUPW, the second largest Canadian public-sector union–NUPGE–uses the cliche “fair wages” without justifying such a cliche or even specifying what it means by the cliche.

What are fair wages?

I have already provided a number of collective agreements with management rights clauses in them (see for example ???) (and even if they do not, it is implied and arbitrators will read into the collective agreement management rights). 

Most management clauses include such management rights as hiring, disciplining, suspending, discharging and evaluating the peformance of  employees–subject to the limits of the collective agreement and relevant legislation. Such rights hardly are “fair” since they permit management to control workers’ lives in various ways and, ultimately, to treat them as means for purposes undefined by the workers themselves (see The Money Circuit of Capital and Employers as Dictators, Part One). How can wages in any way compensate for the loss of freedom of public-sector workers (and workers who work for employers in general)? Perhaps some “leftist” can explain it. More likely, though, the so-called left will remain silent about the issue.

My argument from another post also applies to the issue of “fair wages”:

As shown in the last post, unions persistently claim that, through collective bargaining and a collective agreement, there can arise somehow (by magic?) “a fair and equitable collective agreement.” There can be no such thing as long as there exists a market for workers, where human beings are treated as things and as means for purposes over which they have little control. To claim otherwise is to bullshit workers–and workers deserve much better than this.

The Rhetoric of the CLC: Fair Wages

1. From November 12, 2024 (https://canadianlabour.ca/canadas-unions-demand-respect-for-port-workers-and-fair-negotiations-not-political-interference/): 

Canada’s unions demand respect for port workers and fair negotiations – not political interference

Statement by Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress

 Today’s decision by Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to end the lockouts at the ports in B.C., Montreal, and Quebec City and impose binding arbitration is a troubling step that undermines the fundamental rights of workers and underscores the growing economic unfairness in this country.

Workers are being left behind while corporations rake in record profits; this is not fair.

Too many Canadians are struggling to make ends meet. This is not just about port workers; it’s about an economic system where the gap between the wealthy and working people continues to grow. Workers are simply fighting for fair wages, job security, and safe workplaces—basic rights that should never be up for debate. …

Imposing binding arbitration or back-to-work legislation undermines workers’ rights to collective bargaining, weakening their ability to fight for fair wages and safe workplaces. …

Port workers are simply asking for what they deserve—fair wages, job security, and safe working conditions. 

2. From May 6, 2022 (https://canadianlabour.ca/turn-minimum-wages-into-living-wages-and-index-to-inflation/): 

Turn minimum wages into living wages and index to inflation

Bruske: StatCan numbers show markets aren’t delivering fair wages – governments must take action …

“For decades we have seen governments and businesses rigging the system against workers, pushing down wages and making it harder for workers to organize,” said Bruske. “We need strong, progressive public policies that provide workers a real path to unionization – and the ability to bargain fair wages, real benefits and better working conditions.”

3. From July 6, 2021 (https://canadianlabour.ca/open-letter-to-the-working-people-of-canada/): 

Open Letter to the Working People of Canada …

My first experience in the labour movement was as a young worker fighting for fair wages, benefits and protections at a corner grocery store in Winnipeg. My spirits were lifted by the incredible support we received from other workers and community members.

4. From September 3, 2018 (https://canadianlabour.ca/labour-day-a-holiday-born-in-canada/): 

But the origin of Labour Day came 20 years before that, when unions started holding parades and rallies in Toronto and Ottawa to celebrate the successful 1872 Toronto printers’ strike – the original “fight for fairness” that won major changes including the decriminalization of unions in Canada. … 

The strike ended shortly afterward. While it didn’t achieve its goal of a 9-hour work day, its legacy was long-lasting. Unions – now legal – began to demand fair wages, working hours and safer workplaces. 

5. From CLC Booklet, October 19, 2017 (https://canadianlabour.ca/5-priorities/): 

STRONGER COMMUNITIES TOGETHER

Good jobs for stronger communities Good jobs, fair wages, and safe working conditions build strong communities.

6. March 15, 2015 (https://canadianlabour.ca/research/issues-research-closing-gender-pay-gap/): 

Fair pay means that the work women and men do is equally respected and valued. Unfortunately, this is not the reality for many workers in Canada, where there is still a big gap between what women and men earn. Thanks to the labour movement, this pay gap is already much less for women with unions, but income equality for all working women is the ultimate goal. [So, are men’s wages the standard for “fair pay?” The male workers can be exploited and oppressed–but they still receive “fair pay?” And if women are exploited and oppressed, as long as they receive the same wage as men, they also receive “fair pay?”

7. February 24, 2015 (https://canadianlabour.ca/uncategorized/why-unions-history-labour-canada/): 

History of Labour in Canada

1919: The Winnipeg general strike

The year 1919 saw soldiers returning home after World War I to find high unemployment rates and inflation. They couldn’t get their jobs back and social tension was high.  Workers in various trades wanted fair wages: much like workers today, they just wanted to earn enough to be able to support their families in the changing economy. [So, are fair wages then wages that enable workers “to support their families in the changing economy”–an economy which they do not control but rather controls them?] 

8. From August 29, 2014 (https://canadianlabour.ca/news-news-archive-unions-stand-fairness-canada/): 

All too often the image of union members is framed by a small, but influential group of lobbyists whose goal is to weaken the labour movement. We can’t allow that to happen. Most Canadians believe that unions have a positive role to play in society. People still expect the labour movement to stand up for fair wages and work hours, workplace safety standards, parental leave, vacation pay, and protection from discrimination and harassment. Indeed, many benefits first gained by unions at the bargaining table are now enjoyed by all workers, whether or not they belong to a union.

9. From August 29, 2013 (https://canadianlabour.ca/news-news-archive-union-wages-benefit-all-communities-clc-president-says-much-celebrate-labour-day/): 

Union wages benefit all communities: CLC president says much to celebrate on Labour Day

The President of the Canadian Labour Congress says workers in Canada have much to celebrate on Labour Day because union wages benefit the entire community.

“We believe in the old saying that what we desire for ourselves we wish for all,” says Ken Georgetti. “Many of the benefits first won by unions are enjoyed by all workers today, including fair wages, overtime pay, pensions, workplace safety standards, parental leaves, vacation pay and protection from discrimination and harassment.” …

He adds, “We in the labour movement take satisfaction in knowing that we have helped to build a stronger middle class and a more secure economy for everyone in our country. When unions stand up for fairness, they raise the bar for everyone.”

10. From September 4, 2009 (https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/highlights-in-canadian-labour-history-1.850282): 

The Labour Day holiday, however, was established to recognize the contribution that ordinary working people have made to the Canadian way of life, said Ken Georgetti, president of the Canadian Labour Congress.

“The union movement has built a very large part of society, both in terms of the way people are paid, but also in terms of people’s rights,” he said.

This includes the right to fair wages, safe working conditions and compensation for injury, and equitable labour relations.

Conclusion

The CLC uses the cliche “fair wages” or its equivalent, likely to “sell” certain collective-bargaining proposals to union members as well as to criticize the employer’s intransigence if it refuses to meet the bargaining team’s target wage. Nowhere does the CLC specify how fair wages can be fair in the context of the domination of the class power of employers.