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BC Chamber of Commerce
#1201, 750 West Pender Street
Vancouver, BC V6C 2T8
T 604.683.0700
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Advocacy & Policy
2010 - 2011 Policy & Positions Manual
<< back to Statements of Policy
Labour and Employment
The vast majority of employment and economic development in BC is generated from the small and medium sized business sector (SME). SME’s currently account for 80% of job creation in Canada and their employees represent nearly 50% of all workers in the province.
A disincentive to investment and killer of jobs is over-regulation by government of SME’s. Labour and employment regulations underwent significant changes under the last government. In most cases, the changes made it more difficult for SME’s to operate, and significantly hindered job creation in BC during that period.
Since 2001, the current government has introduced major legislative reform to the Labour Relations Code, the Employment Standards Act, the Workers' Compensation Act, and the Human Rights Code. These changes, the Chamber believes, help to restore balance to the employment and labour legislation in the province and support SME’s in creating jobs and employment opportunities, while at the same time ensuring the rights of employees are protected. The changes recognize the need to ensure the economic viability of business enterprises within the province. While there are many government regulations in this field, the key labour and employment regulations addressed by the Chamber’s Policy and Positions Manual at the provincial level are:
- Labour Relations Code
- Employment Standards Act
- Workers’ Compensation Act
- Human Rights Code
At the federal level, the focus of the Chamber’s Policy and Positions Manual is the Canada Labour Relations Code.
The Chamber continues to recommend as a general policy that governments at both the federal and provincial level do not enact any changes that further regulate and restrict SME’s. Changes must be adapted to labour and employment legislation that will continue to promote job creation and make it simpler for SME’s to survive and grow.
The changes introduced so far, individually and collectively, have gone a long way towards supporting SME’s and their employees by introducing flexibility in the workplace. However, there is still work to be done by the government in all areas of labour and employment reform within the province. The skills shortages that the Chamber has addressed for many years require further legislative reform.
The Chamber intends to continue to press for legislative change directly to the government and, as a senior and active participant in the Coalition of Small Businesses and the BC Business Council, in pursuing changes to labour and employment legislation that will assist SME’s to cope with the ever-changing economic needs of the province.