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RCMP exclusion from federal labour regime upheld against Charter challenge.
An RCMP officer challenged the constitutionality of legislation excluding RCMP members from the federal public sector labour relations regime, alleging infringements of freedom of association, freedom of expression, and equality rights under the Charter.
The majority held that s. 2(d) protects the formation of independent employee associations and lawful collective activity, but does not require Parliament to include RCMP members within a particular statutory labour relations scheme.
The majority further held that the exclusions did not infringe s. 2(b) or s. 15(1), emphasizing that the Charter generally imposes no positive obligation of legislative inclusion absent exceptional circumstances.
The appeal was dismissed, with a dissent concluding that the exclusion had an anti-associational purpose and failed s. 1 justification.
Board could not deem contract teachers public service employees for bargaining purposes.
The appellant union sought a declaration that teachers working in a federal penitentiary through a private contractor were government employees and members of the existing bargaining unit for collective bargaining purposes.
The majority held that, applying the pragmatic and functional approach, Parliament did not intend to confer jurisdiction on the labour board to determine that persons not appointed within the statutory public service scheme were employees of the Public Service.
The statutory regime created distinct labour relations structures for public servants and other federal workers, leaving no room for a de facto category of public servant.
The board therefore committed reviewable jurisdictional error, and the appeal was dismissed.
A dissent would have held the issue fell within the board's labour relations expertise and that its decision was not patently unreasonable.
