Unifor to testify against workplace surveillance

OTTAWA, Feb. 13, 2018 /CNW/ - Unifor will take its battle with the federal government over proposed workplace surveillance legislation to the Senate on Tuesday.

"Video-recording workers on the job is a surveillance tool, pure and simple," said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. "We've campaigned against this over-reach from employers from the start. Managerial video surveillance cannot become the government standard."

WHAT: Unifor testimony to the Senate Committee on Transport and Communications
WHEN: 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, February 13, 2018
WHERE: Room 2, Victoria Building, Ottawa (telecast link)
WHO: Bruce Snow, Unifor Rail Sector Director

Bill C-49, An Act to amend the Canada Transportation Act and other Acts respecting transportation and to make related and consequential amendments to other Acts, proposes to require all railway operators install and utilize Locomotive Voice and Video Recorders (LVVRs). Unifor says the government has provided little evidence to demonstrate how LVVRs will be an improvement over the "black box" data recorders already installed on trains.

Unifor is deeply committed to the safety of its members and the communities in which they work. However Bill C-49 marks a significant intrusion on the privacy of employees in the railway industry in exchange for a very limited benefit to rail safety. If open-ended surveillance of the kind proposed in Bill C-49 is allowed to become law, it sets a dangerous precedent for workers in other sectors.

More information is available at unifor.org/c49

Unifor is Canada's largest union in the private sector, representing 315,000 workers in every major area of the economy. The union advocates for all working people and their rights, fights for equality and social justice in Canada and abroad, and strives to create progressive change for a better future.

SOURCE Unifor