Secret mandate imposition on bargaining with AB public sector workers could lead to work stoppages: Opinion

In a recent opinion piece for The Conversation, Athabasca University scholars Jason Foster, Bob Barnetson, and Susan Cake discuss the challenges associated with bargaining processes between public sector workers in Alberta and their employers. Unions representing workers from almost every public service are currently in or will soon begin the bargaining process. Foster, Barnetson, and Cake explain that, through the Public Sector Employers Act, the AB finance minister can impose secret bargaining mandates on public sector employees. The authors discuss the obstacles that arose when secret mandates were used in 2020 and conclude that secret mandates in the future may lead to work stoppages.