Mounties take union debate online

Mounties are taking to the Internet to debate whether the force should unionize and how the decision should be made.

In April 2009 Ontario's Superior Court struck down federal regulations that prevent RCMP members from forming a union. It also gave the government a deadline to change the law.

That deadline passed last October, but the government has introduced the RCMP Labour Relations Modernization Act, bill C-43, which is now slowly making its way through Parliament.

But it hasn't gone over so well with the Mounties' existing Staff Relations Representative Program.

That advocacy group organized a number of town hall meetings across Canada where members reported a number of concerns about the proposed law, including that the legislation was drafted behind closed doors without consulting officers.

It also argues the legislation does not provide a mechanism to allow Mounties to choose how they want to be represented, saying "imposing a union or an undefined Commissioner's Consultative Committee does not equate to a clear choice."

On a website launched this week, the Mounted Police Members Legal Fund alleges Bill C-43, "provides an expansion of the RCMP Commissioner's powers with respect to human resource management and discipline with no corresponding check or balance."

The site also allows visitors to send a letter to their MP or send a colourful e-postcard with the heading "Stand With Us."

On the other side of the issue, Mounties who favour forming an independent association (the SRRP is funded by the RCMP) have formed the Mounted Police Professional Association. On its new website, the group explains that it seeks to exercise "our right to engage in free collective bargaining with our employer" but does not seek or support the right to strike.

Not surprisingly, C-43 does not figure as prominently on the MPPAC web site, where the organization has simply posted a transcript of the bill's second reading in parliament.