Commission on the Reform of Ontario's Public Services

Chapter 15: Labour Relations and Compensation
The benefit of this voluntary approach of centralization for municipal bargaining is that
municipalities might not be completely “centralized,” but rather become “more centralized”
in bargaining. The larger municipalities, or some groups of them, will tend to bargain together,
and, likewise, the smaller municipalities will bargain together but separate from the larger
ones.
A Transparent System
There are many misconceptions around public-sector labour relations and compensation.
Often, misconceptions are heightened by rhetoric about “unreasonable” union demands or
employer-proposed “cuts.” Many citizens have emotional responses to public-sector labour
relations issues. Some may feel intrinsic solidarity with other workers fighting for their rights or
their livelihood; others — particularly those who do not enjoy the same level of benefits or job
security — may instinctively side with employers. In general, public-sector labour relations are
a highly politicized policy area.
A government striving to ensure value for public money and sustainable delivery of public
services needs to rise above knee-jerk politics. That means sticking to the facts:
� Total compensation involves more than just wages. Thus, any conversation about total
compensation must consider all elements of a pay package — including benefits,
pensions, job security and working conditions/rules;
� There is no such thing as a “typical” public-sector job (nor a “typical” private-sector job,
for that matter). Thus, it does not make sense to consider all BPS workers the same, nor to
treat them the same when it comes to compensation;
� There are challenges in measuring productivity across different job categories (in both the
public and private sectors) and with comparing job categories, but these challenges can
be overcome; and
� Labour markets are important, but the existence of public-sector monopoly employers
complicates the influence of those markets. In general, retention premiums should not be
provided to employees in jobs with an excess supply of labour.
These facts can and must be supported by data. To foster balanced, effective and transparent
labour relations, good, independent information is key.
Recommendation 15-11: Establish a Labour Relations Information Bureau to collect and
disseminate the range of data and information relevant to employers and unions in the broader
public sector in their negotiations, and identify data and other information/knowledge gaps.
Of particular importance is developing data and measures of productivity.
377