This petition was about protecting the constitutional rights of B.C.’s construction workers. Forcing workers to join specific unions as a condition of work violates their right to freedom of association under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and we’re pleased the B.C. Supreme Court ruled we can proceed with our challenge to the legal authority of the Government to impose the “Building Trades Only Requirement” on public construction projects. We believe the Supreme Court of BC will also agree this PLA is a constitutional violation, and look forward to working collaboratively with government on legal, productive, and sustainable ways to attract and retain more British Columbians into BC’s construction industry.

Read the full B.C. Supreme Court ruling here. For further reference, The advocacy section of the BCCA website provides a full background about the BC Community Benefits Agreement.

– Chris Atchison, President, BC Construction Association