Trudeau slams Ford government's 'attack on people's fundamental rights'

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he spoke with Ontario education unions Friday morning as they took part in what the province is calling an “illegal” strike and reiterated he was “extremely worried” about the use of the notwithstanding clause to mandate a contract with workers.

Trudeau made the comments while speaking in North York about his government's GST credits for families.

“It is a very, very serious thing to suspend people’s fundamental rights and freedoms,” he said. “The proactive use of the notwithstanding clause is actually an attack on people’s fundamental rights and, in this case, is an attack on one of the most basic rights available—that of collective bargaining.”

“I think there are a lot of people, a lot of parents like me, who have kids in Ontario schools that are concerned about the job action, about the strikes, but I can tell you, all parents, all parents, should be extremely worried about the suspension of our most fundamental rights and freedoms.”

He added that the federal government is looking at “all options” to protect those freedom; however he did not go into detail about what those options could be.

This isn’t the first time Trudeau has spoke out against Bill 28, an Ontario law that passed Thursday that uses the notwithstanding clause to override sections in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to make it illegal for workers to strike.

The bill also legislates a four-year contract onto the Canadian Union of Public Employees’ (CUPE) 55,000 members, which includes custodians, administrative staff and educational support workers.

• LIVE COVERAGE: Education support workers protest across Ontario

Earlier this week, Trudeau called Ontario Premier Doug Ford and told him his use of the notwithstanding clause was “wrong and inappropriate.”

The notwithstanding clause is part of Section 33 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and gives provincial governments the ability to override certain portions of the charter for a five-year time period.

Ford, for his part, has used the clause rather liberally. He first threatened to use it in 2018 to slash Toronto city council seats during a municipal election and then actually invoked it to restore parts of the Election Finances Act in 2021.

In the case of Bill 38, the Ford government is arguing it’s necessary to keep schools open and prevent disruptions for children.

“The outrage we’re seeing across the country right now at this latest use (of the notwithstanding clause), building on top of previous uses that I have consistently condemned, I think is a moment for all Canadians to reflect and say, ‘yeah, our fundamental rights are not to be cancelled away by governments who want to get things done in the easiest and most efficient ways possible at the cost of people’s fundamental freedoms,’” Trudeau added Friday.

Prime Minster Justin Trudeau announces the GST credits being offered to families on, Friday, November 4, 2022 at the Dennis Timbrell Community Centre in North York, Ont. THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Tijana Martin

Ontario is also applying to have the strike and the actions of the union leaders deemed illegal by the Ontario Labour Relations Board.