In Calgary, Alberta, Canada, I worked in the bread factory of Canada Safeway Ltd. more than 30 years ago. I found the work to be very oppressive and exploitative. We had to work as fast as possible taking baked bread out of the oven and loading it on to racks.
(I subsequently moved to the province British Columbia (to a city called Prince George) and then to Manitoba (to a city called Winnipeg).
I lasted one week and quit. Undoubtedly, the social-democratic left would call such a unionized job decent work and the contract a fair contract, the wages fair wages, the labour laws concerning safety to be fair labour laws and the whole mixture of jobs, collective contract or agreement, wages and labour laws an expression of economic justice. Alternatively, some among the radical left would call such issues as in effect non-issues since we cannot offer instantly a socialist alternative (see the superficial view expounded by Sam Gindin).
The social-democratic left have nothing to say to those who find such work to be expressive and exploitative except: ‘Shut your mouths and quit whining. After all, you have a decent job, fair wages, a fair contract and live in an economically just society.’
The existence of collective agreements for the social-democratic left is the ultimate expression of “economic justice” for them. The fact that workers are used as means for other people’s ends does not worry them (seeĀ The Money Circuit of Capital). They will repeat the mantra of “decent work, fair wages, fair contracts and economic justice”–without questioning the fairness of the employer-employee relation as such.
Such unionists cannot deal with the issue of management rights–they simply ignore why management has these rights and continue to express that mantra despite the power of management over workers.
Are such unionists ideologists of employers despite their representative function for workers? Their intent may be to help workers, but what is their objective function when they limit discussion to provisions relating to the collective agreement? Do such unionists actively engage workers in discussions that challenge the workers’ own points of view? Do they actively engage in discussions with workers that challenge their own points of view? Or do they avoid such discussions out of fear that they may be criticized?
Collective Agreement Between BIMBO CANADA (Formerly Canada Bread) and UNITED FOOD AND COMMERCIAL WORKERS UNION, LOCAL NO. 832
From Collective Agreement between Bimbo Canada and United Food and Commerical Workers Union, Local No. 832, January 1, 2021-December 31, 2023, page 17:
SECTION 12 MANAGEMENT’S RIGHTS AND FUNCTIONS
12.01 The management of the Company and the direction of the working force, including the right to plan, direct and control plant operations; to maintain the discipline and efficiency of the employees and to require employees to observe Company rules and regulations; to hire; lay off or assign employees’ working hours; transfer;
promote; demote, discipline, suspend or discharge employees for proper cause, are to
be the sole right and function of the Employer.The Company shall be the sole judge as to the merchandise to be handled in its plant.
12.02 The foregoing enumeration of management’s rights shall not be deemed to exclude other functions not specifically set forth. The Employer, therefore, retains all rights not otherwise specifically set forth and all rights not otherwise specifically covered in this Agreement.
12.03 The exercise of the foregoing rights shall not alter any of the specific
provisions of this Agreement.
