Bill C-422

SUMMARY

This enactment amends the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act (“the Act”) to ensure that staff of members of the Senate and the House of Commons, who serve them in their capacity as Member of Parliament, Leader, House Leader or Whip, will not be prevented from being included in a bargaining unit. The enactment covers caucus staff, parliamentary committee staff, and staff in a minister’s office who are hired under the Act, but not staff in a minister’s office who are hired under the Public Service Employment Act.

To achieve its objectives, the enactment

(a) amends the Act to ensure that Part I of the Act does not apply to staff who are hired under the Public Service Employment Act;

(b) adds members of both Houses to the definition of “employer”; and

(c) excludes persons employed under the Public Service Employment Act from the definition “employee”, so that the staff in a minister’s office who were hired under that Act are not within that definition.

The enactment also prohibits lockouts by employers of their employees and imposes fines on those causing lockouts. This makes the Act consistent in its provisions respecting strikes and lockouts.

The commencement provision of the Act is amended to ensure that all of the provisions of the Act that have not previously been brought into force will come into force not later than the day on which this enactment comes into force.