Passed as legislation in 2018, the Community Benefits Agreement mandates that workers on certain government-funded infrastructure projects must be members of specific unions[1][2]. Only companies with employees belonging to the Allied Infrastructure and Related Construction Council of British Columbia, an alliance of 19 building-trade unions, can bid on the projects.
Criticisms and Controversies
The situation remains controversial, with ongoing debate about the effectiveness and fairness of the CBA’s union-related provisions. The requirement that all workers on infrastructure projects must belong to a limited number of specified unions has been challenged as violating workers’ Charter Freedom of Association[5].
Union membership rules have been criticized for several reasons:
- They are seen as unfair to workers who choose not to join these specific unions or prefer no union representation[1].
- Companies whose workers are not part of the designated unions are blocked from working on projects their taxes help fund[1].
- This restriction may discourage some construction companies from bidding on government projects, potentially driving up costs because of reduced competition[1].
- Restricting projects to only unionized, excludes non-unionized workers, which could worsen productivity during labour shortages[6].
BC Conservative Leader John Rustad does not appear to be a fan of CBAs, at least not according to this social media post he made back in Sept. 17, 2020: “They are project labour agreements that shut out 85 per cent of construction workers, drive up costs and deliver less for more. The only ones who benefit are their hand picked union supporters.”
Impact on Project Management
The CBA introduces significant changes to how project workforces are managed:
- A provincial Crown corporation, BC Infrastructure Benefits Inc. (BCIB), becomes the employer of almost all workers on CBA-related projects[1].
- This arrangement displaces contractors from their traditional roles as employers and adds to government costs[1].
Negative fallout
Critics argue that these union-related rules have led to several negative outcomes:
- Worsened labor shortages in the construction industry[1].
- Cost overruns on projects, such as the Cowichan District Hospital Replacement[1].
- Discrimination against some contractors, including Indigenous-owned businesses, whose workers aren’t represented by the specified unions[1][7]
- A contractor with Cowichan Tribes went public about being denied work on the site. He then blocked access to the District hospital construction site. “I have said repeatedly that the community benefits agreement needs to be abolished. It insults us on our own territory,” Jon Coleman, owner of Jon-co Contracting.[8]
- The BC government backed down on its union-only rules for the Cowichan hospital project.
Government’s Perspective
The BC government maintains that the CBA aims to:
- Deliver good-paying jobs to British Columbians[3].
- Wage parity with industry standards and prioritize local hires[3].
- Provide better training and apprenticeship opportunities[3].
- Increase trades opportunities for underrepresented groups, including Indigenous peoples, women, and youth[3].
Approved building-trade unions
- British Columbia Regional Council of Carpenters
- Construction Maintenance and Allied Workers Couricil
- International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Ironworkers Local Union·97
- International Association of Heat & Frost Insulators & Asbestos Workers local Union 118
- International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers local Union 280, local Union 276
- International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron Shipbuilders, Blacksmiths, Forgers and Helpers Lodge 359
- International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 213, Local Union 993, Local Union 1003, Local 230
- International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local Union 213
- International Union of Bricklayers & Allied Craftworkers Local Union No. 2
- International Union of Operating Engineers Local Union 115
- International Union of Painters & Allied Trades District Council 38 Painters 138, Glaziers 1527, Drywall Finishers 2009
- Labourers International Union of North America Construction and Specialized Workers Union Local 1611
- Move Up – A Movement of United Professionals Local 378
- Operative Plasterers’ and Cement Masons’ International Association of the United States and Canada Local Union 919
- United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing & Pipefitting Industry of the United States and Canada Local Union 170, Local Union 516, Local 324
- United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America Floorlayers Local Union 1541
- United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America Millwrights, Machine Erectors & Maintenance 2736
- United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America Piledrivers Local Union 2404
- UNITE-HERE Local 40
Projects under the CBA so far
- The Illecillewaet brake check project
- The Pattullo Bridge Replacement Project
- The Trans Canada Highway #1 – Kamloops to Alberta 4-Laning Project
- The Broadway Subway Project
- The Cowichan District Hospital Replacement Project
- The Kicking Horse Canyon, Phase 4 Project
- The Centre for Clean Energy and Automotive Innovation at Vancouver Community College[6]
Citations:
[1] https://www.cardus.ca/news/news-releases/british-columbias-community-benefits-agreement-is-badly-broken/
[2] https://www.sicabc.ca/advocacy/community-benefits-agreement—bc
[3] https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2018PREM0057-001406
[4] https://bcib.ca/about-us/cba/[5] https://www.biv.com/news/economy-law-politics/bc-community-benefits-agreement-back-court-8260944
[6] https://www.cardus.ca/research/work-economics/reports/benefits-for-whom/
[7] https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/duncan-bc-hospital-dispute-1.6674184
[8] https://vancouversun.com/opinion/columnists/cowichan-tribes-member-assails-paternalistic-government-over-new-hospital-project
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Updated Oct. 1, 2024.