Labour Organizations in Canada 2015
Introduction
Every year, the Workplace Information and Research Division of the Labour Program undertakes a survey of all labour organizations in Canada that represent bargaining units of 50 or more workers. Footnote 1 The results from the 2015 survey are presented in this report, along with updates on union mergers and changes to legislation affecting collective bargaining in Canada in 2015.
The number of unionized workers in Canada increased from 2014
As reported by labour organizations, the total number of workers paying dues to a union in Canada was 4.83 million at the end of 2015, up from 4.75 million at the end of 2014.
Union dues-paying workers comprised 31.8% of all employees in Canada in 2015, an increase of 0.3 percentage points from 2014 (Appendix 1). By comparison, the share of employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement, as calculated by Statistics Canada, was 30.6% in 2015. Footnote 2
The majority of unionized workers were represented by national unions
In Canada, unions can be divided into four main types: (1) national; (2) international; (3) independent local organization; and (4) directly chartered local. Footnote 3 A strong majority (69.7%) of dues-paying workers (henceforth, unionized workers) were affiliated with national unions (Chart 1 and Appendix 3) in 2015. International unions accounted for almost 25% of unionized workers, followed by independent local organizations (3.9%) and directly chartered locals (1.5%). Compared to 2014, there was little change in representation by type of organization.
Text description Chart 1: Share of unionized workers, by organization type, 2015
Organization type | Distribution (percent) |
---|---|
National | 69.7 |
International | 24.9 |
Independent local | 3.9 |
Directly Chartered | 1.5 |
Text description Chart 2: Share of unions, by organization type, 2015
Organization type | Distribution (percent) |
---|---|
National | 25.3 |
International | 5.2 |
Independent local | 32.2 |
Directly Chartered | 37.4 |
In 2015, national and international unions represented almost 95% of unionized workers, but accounted for 30.5% of the total number of unions in Canada (Chart 2 and Appendix 3). Directly chartered locals and independent local organizations made up the majority of unions (69.6%).
Eight large unions represented almost half of unionized workers
In 2015, the total number of unions stood at 776. Eight of those unions – five of which were national and three international – represented 100,000 or more workers each (Appendix 4). The eight comprised 45.1% of all unionized workers in Canada.
The 18 unions with between 50,000 and 100,000 workers represented 25.9% of all unionized workers. Just 1.9% of unionized workers were members of the 282 unions representing less than 1,000 workers each. Footnote 4
The Canadian Labour Congress represented more than two-thirds of unionized workers
In 2015, the vast majority of unionized workers (81%) were affiliated with a labour congress. The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) represented more than two thirds of all unionized workers (69.0%), Footnote 5 followed by the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN), which represented 6.9% of unionized workers (Chart 3 and Appendix 7). Almost 19% of unionized workers were not affiliated with any labour congress. This situation was relatively unchanged from 2014. While affiliation with the CLC rose slightly (0.2 percentage points), there was no change for the CSN.
Text description Chart 3: Share of unionized workers, by congress affiliation, 2015
Congress affiliation | Distribution (percent) |
---|---|
Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) | 69 |
Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN) | 6.9 |
Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ) | 2.7 |
Centrale des syndicats démocratiques (CSD) | 1.5 |
Confederation of Canadian Unions (CCU) | 0.2 |
American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) only | 0.7 |
Unafiliated unions | 18.9 |
Union mergers
In 2015, two independent unions joined a larger labour organization: the University of New Brunswick Employees Association and its 320 members merged with Unifor to form Local 4504; and the New Frontier Independent Association, with 50 members, merged with the Service Employees International Union to form Local 800.
Legislative changes
In 2015, there were a number of legislative changes affecting unions and collective bargaining in Canada.
A significant change was made to the federal labour relations system with the coming into force of Bill C-525, the Employees' Voting Rights Act, on June 16, 2015. Bill C-525 modified the union certification and revocation of certification (decertification) rules under three federal relations statutes: the Canada Labour Code, the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act and the Public Service Labour Relations Act. On January 28, 2016, the Government of Canada tabled Bill C-4 (An Act to amend the Canada Labour Code, the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act, the Public Service Labour Relations Act and the Income Tax Act) which, if enacted, would reverse the changes made by Bill C-525 and restore the card-check certification system.
In November 2015, the Government of Saskatchewan enacted The Saskatchewan Employment (Essential Services) Amendment Act, 2015, which obliges public service employers and unions to negotiate essential services agreements prior to a work stoppage. In the event an essential service agreement substantially interferes with the right to strike, collective bargaining impasses must be resolved through binding mediation-arbitration. This legislation was enacted in response to a January 2015 finding of the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) that the province's Public Service Essential Services Act was unconstitutional for, among other things, allowing public sector employers to unilaterally designate which workers are essential, thereby substantially interfering with workers' freedom of association and their right to strike.
A number of other legislative changes affecting unions and labour relations were made throughout Canada in 2015. For example, Bill 51 in New Brunswick (An Act to Amend the Public Service Labour Relations Act) amended the provincial Public Service Labour Relations Act to increase the period within which notice to bargain collectively - where a collective agreement or arbitral award is in force - may be given from two to six months. Bill 51 came into force on June 5, 2015. In Alberta, Bill 6 (Enhanced Protection for Farms and Ranch Workers Act) received Royal Assent on December 11, 2015. Bill 6 amended a number of provincial Acts, including amending the Labour Relations Code to no longer exclude certain farm and ranch workers from its application. This amendment will come into force on proclamation.
Appendix 1: Unionized workers in Canada, 1999–2015
Year | Unionized workersa (thousands) |
All Employeesb (thousands) |
Unionized workers as a share of all employees (percent) |
---|---|---|---|
1999 | 4,058 | 11,961 | 33.9 |
2000 | 4,111 | 12,379 | 33.2 |
2001 | 4,174 | 12,654 | 33.0 |
2002 | 4,178 | 12,967 | 32.2 |
2003 | 4,261 | 13,249 | 32.2 |
2004 | 4,381 | 13,459 | 32.5 |
2005 | 4,441 | 13,607 | 32.6 |
2006 | 4,480 | 13,892 | 32.2 |
2007 | 4,592 | 14,171 | 32.4 |
2008 | 4,605 | 14,360 | 32.1 |
2009 | 4,645 | 14,035 | 33.1 |
2010 | 4,626 | 14,283 | 32.4 |
2011 | 4,664 | 14,559 | 32.0 |
2012 | 4,735 | 14,760 | 32.1 |
2013 | 4,710 | 14,961 | 31.5 |
2014 | 4,753 | 15,077 | 31.5 |
2015 | 4,828 | 15,187 | 31.8 |
- a. Source: Labour Program, ESDC
- b. Source: Labour Force Survey, Statistics Canada, CANSIM Table 282-0012
Appendix 2: Union affiliation, 2015
Congress affiliation | Unions | Locals | Unionized workers | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Number | Distribution (percent) |
|||
National | 196 | 10,652 | 3,364,739 | 69.7 |
Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) | 51 | 7,105 | 2,167,858 | 44.9 |
Independent national | 107 | 1,294 | 721,703 | 15.0 |
Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN) | 17 | 1,742 | 329,335 | 6.8 |
Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ) | 14 | 429 | 130,427 | 2.7 |
Confederation of Canadian Unions (CCU) | 5 | 33 | 10,478 | 0.2 |
Centrale des syndicats démocratiques (CSD) | 2 | 49 | 4,938 | 0.1 |
International | 40 | 1,300 | 1,200,415 | 24.9 |
American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) / Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) | 30 | 1,137 | 932,732 | 19.3 |
Change to Win (CtW) / Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) | 3 | 83 | 230,007 | 4.8 |
American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) only | 4 | 72 | 35,684 | 0.7 |
Independent international | 3 | 8 | 1,992 | 0.0 |
Directly chartered | 290 | N/A | 74,490 | 1.5 |
Centrale des syndicats démocratiques (CSD) | 287 | N/A | 68,435 | 1.4 |
Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN) | 1 | N/A | 6,000 | 0.1 |
Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) | 2 | N/A | 55 | 0.0 |
Independent local | 250 | 275 | 188,609 | 3.9 |
Total | 776 | 12,227 | 4,828,253 | 100.0 |
- Source: Labour Program, ESDC
Appendix 3: Type of union, 2015
Organization type | Unions | Unionized workers | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Number | Distribution (percent) | Number | Distribution (percent) | |
National | 196 | 25.3 | 3,364,739 | 69.7 |
International | 40 | 5.2 | 1,200,415 | 24.9 |
Independent local | 250 | 32.2 | 188,609 | 3.9 |
Directly chartered | 290 | 37.4 | 74,490 | 1.5 |
Total | 776 | 100.0 | 4,828,253 | 100.0 |
- Source: Labour Program, ESDC
- (Percentages may not total to 100% due to rounding)
Appendix 4: Union size and type, 2015
National | International | Independent local | Total* | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unions | Workers | Unions | Workers | Unions | Workers | Unions | Workers | |
Fewer than 1,000 | 81 | 30,478 | 8 | 3,307 | 193 | 57,978 | 282 | 91,763 |
1,000-9,999 | 70 | 263,352 | 14 | 58,501 | 56 | 120,631 | 140 | 442,484 |
10,000-29,999 | 20 | 362,271 | 8 | 130,506 | 1 | 10,000 | 29 | 502,777 |
30,000-49,999 | 8 | 320,162 | 1 | 38,000 | 9 | 358,162 | ||
50,000-99,999 | 12 | 776,280 | 6 | 405,450 | 18 | 1,181,730 | ||
100,00 and more | 5 | 1,612,196 | 3 | 564,651 | 8 | 2,176,847 |
- Source: Labour Program, ESDC
- *Directly chartered unions are not included
Appendix 5: Unions with 30,000 or more unionized workers, 2015
Name | Affiliation | Number |
---|---|---|
Canadian Union of Public Workers | CLC | 635,500 |
National Union of Public and General Workers | CLC | 360,000 |
UNIFOR | CLC | 300,152 |
United Food and Commercial Workers Canada | AFL-CIO/CLC | 247,543 |
United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union | AFL-CIO/CLC | 190,452 |
Public Service Alliance of Canada | CLC | 181,017 |
Fédération de la santé et des services sociaux | CSN | 135,527 |
Service Workers International Union | CtW/CLC | 126,656 |
Labourers' International Union of North America | AFL-CIO/CLC | 97,000 |
Teamsters Canada | CtW/CLC | 93,351 |
Alberta Union of Provincial Workers | Independent national | 85,803 |
Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario | CLC | 78,204 |
FTQ Construction | CLC | 77,300 |
Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation | CLC | 73,311 |
Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec | Independent national | 66,000 |
Christian Labour Association of Canada | Independent national | 61,501 |
Fédération des employées et employés de services publics inc. | CSN | 60,700 |
Ontario Nurses' Federation | CLC | 60,000 |
Fédération des syndicats de l'enseignement | CSQ | 59,000 |
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers | AFL-CIO/CLC | 57,130 |
United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada | AFL-CIO/CLC | 55,643 |
Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada | Independent national | 53,930 |
International Union of Operating Engineers | AFL-CIO/CLC | 52,326 |
Canadian Union of Postal Workers | CLC | 50,531 |
International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers | AFL-CIO/CLC | 50,000 |
United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America | CLC | 50,000 |
Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association | CLC | 48,545 |
British Columbia Nurses' Union | Independent national | 46,291 |
British Columbia Teachers' Federation | CLC | 43,563 |
Alberta Teachers' Association | Independent national | 42,572 |
Amalgamated Transit Union | AFL-CIO/CLC | 38,000 |
Canadian Office and Professional Employees Union | CLC | 36,287 |
Syndicat de la fonction publique et parapublique du Québec | Independent national | 34,904 |
Fédération autonome de l'enseignement | Independent national | 34,000 |
Fédération nationale des enseignantes et des enseignants du Québec | CSN | 34,000 |
- Affiliations legend:
- AFL-CIO - American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations
- CLC – Canadian Labour Congress
- CSN - Confédération des syndicats nationaux
- CSQ - Centrale des syndicats du Québec
- CtW - Change to Win
- Source: Labour Program, ESDC
Appendix 6: Affiliation with the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), 2015
Unionized workers | ||
---|---|---|
Number | Distribution (percent) | |
CLC affiliation only | 2,167,858 | 65.1 |
CLC and international affiliation | 1,162,739 | 34.9 |
AFL-CIO/CLC | 932,732 | 28.0 |
CtW/CLC | 230,007 | 6.9 |
CLC directly chartered | 55 | 0.0 |
Total affiliation with the CLC | 3,330,891 | 100.0 |
- Source: Labour Program, ESDC
Appendix 7: Union coverage, by congress affiliation, 2015
Congress affiliation | Unionized workers | |
---|---|---|
Number | Distribution (percent) | |
Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) | ||
American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) / Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) | 932,732 | 19.3 |
Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) only | 2,167,858 | 44.9 |
Change to Win (CtW) / Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) | 230,007 | 4.8 |
Directly chartered | 55 | 0.0 |
Total | 3,330,652 | 69.0 |
Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN) | ||
Federation | 329,335 | 6.8 |
Directly chartered | 6,000 | 0.1 |
Total | 335,335 | 6.9 |
Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ) | ||
Total | 130,427 | 2.7 |
Centrale des syndicats démocratiques (CSD) | ||
Federation | 4,938 | 0.1 |
Directly chartered | 68,435 | 1.4 |
Total | 73,373 | 1.5 |
Confederation of Canadian Unions (CCU) | ||
Total | 10,478 | 0.2 |
American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) only | ||
Total | 35,684 | 0.7 |
Unaffiliated unions | ||
Independent international | 1,992 | 0.0 |
Independent local | 188,609 | 3.9 |
Independent national | 721,703 | 14.9 |
Total | 912,304 | 18.9 |
Grand Total | 4,828,253 | 100.0 |
- Source: Labour Program, ESDC
Appendix 8: Methodology
The Labour Program's data is collected directly from labour organizations using a self-reporting survey. Small labour organizations (i.e. fewer than 50 workers) are not part of the sampling frame for the survey, since the Labour Program does not have a systematic count of them.
For each labour organization, the survey asks about the number of union dues-paying workers, the number of locals represented, and the union's affiliation with the labour congresses. The information is requested as of December 31 of the reporting year. The survey is sent out in mid-December with responses requested by the end of January the following year. When labour organizations do not respond to the survey by the time the results are consolidated, figures from the most recent year available are used instead.
The Labour Program's survey of labour organizations and Statistics Canada's Labour Force Survey (LFS) provide different estimates of the union coverage rate. The numerator of the rates differ because of how the data is collected (i.e. the LFS is a survey of households, and it is a monthly survey) and what is measured (i.e. the LFS asks persons who have paid employment whether they are covered by a collective bargaining agreement as well as whether they are members of a union). The denominator used to calculate the coverage rates is the same, the number of employees in Canada, as reported in the LFS.
Appendix 9: Definitions
Union: Labour organization that organizes and charters locals, sets general policy for its locals, assists them in the conduct of their affairs, and is the medium for co-ordinating their activities.
Labour congress: An umbrella organization of unions that provides assistance and support to its members.
Unionized workers: All workers that are paying unions dues to a labour organization.
Union coverage: Unionized workers as a share of all employees in Canada.
Local: The basic unit of labour organizations formed in a particular plant or establishment. The members participate directly in the affairs of their local, including the election of officers, financial and other business matters, and relations between their organization and the employer, and they pay dues to the local.
National union: A union that represents its members in Canada only.
International union: A union that represents its members in Canada and the United States. In Labour Program's survey, only workers in Canada are reported.
Independent local organization: A union that is not formally affiliated with any other labour organization.
Directly chartered local: A union that is organized and receives its charter from a labour congress. It pays per capita dues to the congress and receives services from the congress.
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