Province reviewing opt-in clause for Alberta union dues after charitable donations take a hit

The Alberta government plans to change legislation passed three years ago that unions say is hurting their ability to donate to charities. 

In a mandate letter released this week, Premier Danielle Smith directed Jobs, Economy and Trade Minister Matt Jones to consult with private sector unions "on ways to reduce red tape in aspects of the Restoring Balance in Alberta's Workplaces Act that made it unduly onerous for unions to make charitable donations."

Andrea Farmer, the press secretary for Jones, said the timing of the consultations and potential changes to legislation haven't been decided.

Terry Parker is the executive director of Building Trades of Alberta, the umbrella organization for 18 construction unions. He said he's welcoming the development.

"[The legislation] has really halted a lot of the charitable contributions that we have been giving over the past 100 years," he said. 

The UCP government under former premier Jason Kenney introduced the legislation, also known as Bill 32, in 2020. Its purpose was to provide more "balance" to legislation passed by the previous NDP government, which the UCP believed was skewed in favour of unions.

Bill 32 split union activities into core and non-core activities, and union dues not used for core duties were subject to an opt-in clause. Members had to give permission before any part of their dues went toward "non-core" activities like political and charitable donations. 

The opt-in provision came into effect in August 2022. Parker said many unions decided the extra paperwork just wasn't worth the hassle. 

"To make sure that we're dealing with core activity, we don't donate anything to charity," he said. 

The Building Trades of Alberta and its affiliates have made millions of dollars in donations to organizations like the Stollery Children's Hospital and STARS, as well as food banks and women's shelters. 

Constitutional challenge

Jason Foster, director of the Parkland Institute and an associate professor of human resources and labour relations at Athabasca University, surveyed Alberta unions last year to gauge how the opt-in provision was affecting donations. 

In a study released in September, Foster estimated community organizations and registered charities would lose about $3.5 million in donations, a drop of 38 per cent. 

Foster wonders why charitable donations were subject to the opt-in clause in the first place. He said he recently looked at Hansard and found MLAs never raised the issue when the bill was debated in 2020. 

"What confuses me though is that it is explicitly in the legislation, so it was on somebody's mind," he said. 

"It may have been a blind spot, but if it was a blind spot, why was it explicitly stated in the legislation?"

Foster is also puzzled by the new mandate letter's direction to reach out to private-sector unions, as the legislation affects unions that represent workers in the public sector as well. 

Mike Parker, president of the Health Sciences Association of Alberta (HSAA), is also questioning the limited scope of the consultation.

"HSAA represents both public and private sector health-care professionals. All dedicated Albertans who work on the front line of health care deserve to be heard," Parker said in a statement to CBC News. 

"I would encourage the premier and the minister to live up to the stated expectation in the mandate letter to 'regularly and proactively reach out to all ministry-related stakeholders.' That means the public sector as well as the private."

The Building Trades of Alberta currently has a constitutional challenge of the opt-in provision before the courts. 

Parker, the executive director, said that may have been a factor in the government's decision to take another look at the law. He said the unions represented by the Building Trades of Alberta do not make political donations. 

Parker said he was able to speak directly to Premier Smith before the election, and he's pleased she's making good on her promise. 

"It's a good thing that Danielle Smith has decided to go down this road and see what we can do to find a way around this without actually having to find a result at the courts," he said.