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This paper provides a comprehensive overview and analysis of the Canadian law governing employer surveillance of employees. Reviewing the arbitral jurisprudence as well as the jurisprudence under federal and provincial privacy legislation, the authors trace the development of a broad convergence in the principles that courts and adjudicators will apply in surveillance cases. That convergence reflects a wide acceptance of what the authors refer to as the reasonableness paradigm - an approach which recognizes that the employ- er's interest in managing the workplace must be balanced, in a proportionate way, against the employees' interest in privacy. The authors point out that the reasonableness paradigm is generally being followed in cases involving video surveillance of employees, both on-site and off-site, and monitoring of employ- ees' computer use at work. However, they emphasize, it is not being followed in the context of employees' off-duty, off site activities online, such as Facebook postings and blogs. The authors challenge the suggestion that those activities are intrinsically "public" rather than private, and that employees who engage in them should essentially be considered to have forfeited any privacy protection. In their view, the values which underpin privacy rights may well be implicated by employees' online activities outside the workplace. Accordingly, they argue, the approach taken in such cases should be brought into line with the principles of reasonableness and balancing usually applied to other types of work- related electronic surveillance.

Although refugee claimants are often portrayed as a drain on Canada’s economic resources, their employment experiences and contributions to the labour market remain under-represented in the literature. This study explores the employment experiences of refugee claimants in Toronto, Canada. Through the lens of refugeeness, it traces the subjective employment trajectories of refugee claimants, as well as the objective forces compromising their employability. Drawing on 17 interviews with refugee claimants, our analysis shows both that refugee claimants face distinct barriers stemming from their precarious legal status, and that refugee claimants’ employability is perceived as shaped by real and ascribed barriers associated with this status. In addition, refugee claimants perceive employment as an expression of belonging and citizenship.

This article reviews the book, "Indigenous Women and Work: From Labor to Activism," edited by Carol Williams.

De nombreuses recherches ont démontré que les individus qui s’engagent dans de multiples rôles de vie s’exposent à des conflits inter-rôles. Selon cette perspective conflictuelle, un engagement marqué et simultané dans plusieurs rôles peut conduire à l’épuisement des ressources individuelles. Une analyse typologique, effectuée auprès de 252 hommes gestionnaires ou professionnels vivant au sein d’un couple à double revenu, fait ressortir trois profils d’engagement dans les rôles de travailleur et de parent. L’un des profils regroupe les hommes ayant un engagement marqué dans les deux rôles, alors que les deux autres profils caractérisent ceux qui présentent un engagement marqué dans un seul de ceux-ci. Les résultats révèlent que les trois profils d’engagement se distinguent sur certaines variables sociodémographiques et socioprofessionnelles, de même que sur le plan des conflits entre le travail et la famille. Contrairement aux attentes, les hommes ayant un engagement marqué pour les rôles de travailleur et de parent ne présentent pas des niveaux de conflits inter-rôles supérieurs à ceux des autres profils. Il semble plutôt qu’un engagement marqué et simultané dans les rôles de travailleur et de parent puisse avoir un effet bénéfique pour l’individu. Ces résultats témoignent de la nécessité de poursuivre les recherches sur les profils d’engagement dans une perspective d’enrichissement et de facilitation des rôles. Les facteurs qui déterminent l’engagement des hommes dans les rôles et la compatibilité des profils d’engagement des conjointes devraient également être approfondis.

Access to labour relations legislation is generally seen as a prerequisite to unionization of agricultural workers in Canada. British Columbia is one of eight Canadian provinces that now include agricultural workers in provincial labour relations legislation. But agricultural workers were not always included. Although union organizing and strike activity were not unheard of in BC’s agricultural sector in the 1930s, the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act of 1937 excluded agricultural workers. This exclusion followed a larger pattern of excluding agricultural workers from employment-related legisla­tion. Agricultural workers continued to be excluded until the mid-1970s, when the efforts of NDP backbenchers persuaded their own government that agri­cultural workers ought to be included in provincial collective bargaining laws. As demonstrated in a brief overview of the two campaigns to unionize agri­cultural workers under BC’s labour relations legislation since 1975, although small numbers of workers have been able to form unions and achieve collec­tive agreements under the legislative protections of the Labour Code, those collective bargaining relationships have thus far proven unstable and often short-lived.

The article reviews the book, "Canadian Studies: Past, Present, Praxis," edited by Christl Verduyn and Jane Koustas.

This article reviews the book, "Black-Brown Coalition and the Fight for Economic Justice, 1960-1974," by Gordon K. Mantler.

Argues that the Conservative government of Stephen Harper is rewriting Canadian history as a propaganda celebration of a "warrior state" while cutting funds for serious historical research.

This study examines the relationship between internal labour markets (ILMs) and the transition from temporary to permanent employment, particularly following the legislative changes regarding the use of temporary workers in Korea. We test our research model based on data gathered during two different periods from 619 and 616 Korean companies respectively. The results show that ILMs help companies turn temporary employees into permanent ones. Furthermore, environmental dynamism increases the need for temporary workers, which prohibits the transition from temporary to permanent employment, particularly when seniority-based pay is tightly implemented within a firm. The effects of ILMs on the transition from temporary to permanent employment become pronounced as companies internalize institutional changes. The current study demonstrates that the features of the employment system shape and establish organizational norms and traditions and play a critical role in achieving the intended effects of institutional change.

This article reviews the book, "Land of 10,000 Loves: A History of Queer Minnesota," by Stewart Van Cleve.

Since the eruption of the European sovereign debt crisis, the bailout conditions imposed on Greece have gradually shifted their emphasis from "tidying up" public finances towards "improving the competitiveness" of the economy. The employment relations system has been targeted as one of the priority areas for reform, which resulted in its gradual dismantling. The article analyses this transformation in employment regulation, using insights from the varieties of capitalism literature. It is argued that the ongoing injection of liberal market elements is likely to transform Greece into a dysfunctional Liberal Market Economy. The changes ignore the specificities and idiosyncrasies of the Greek production model and are likely to leave the country with the "worst of both worlds": suboptimal economic performance and diluted social cohesion.

Since the time of the Arts and Crafts movement of the late nineteenth century, craft production and consumption has been politicized. Craft’s focus on hand making has been used to contrast intentional, individual labour with the division of labour involved in industrial mass production. Through its mission to build a more fulfilling world through ethical commerce, craftsmanship, and fun, the contemporary e-commerce site Etsy participates in the discourse of politicized craft that was articulated over a hundred years ago by William Morris, with his dream of “joy in labour.” While craft’s individualism can limit its political effectiveness, craft’s utopian impulse to build a better world through more fun and through labour that is more fair is a valuable ideal and one that has survived for more than a century.

Critiques Prime Minister Stephen Harper's June 11, 2008 apology for the abuse of students in Indian residential schools and his remarks about Canada's history at a 2009 press conference at the 2009 G20 meeting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Argues that rather than celebrating the War of 1812 and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, the federal government should commemorate the Royal Proclamation of 1763 and the Treaty of Niagara as pivotal shared events with Indigenous peoples.

Starting with this issue we have decided to set aside space in the journal for a forum and for ongoing debate on issues of major social and scientific importance in industrial relations practice and theory. / C’est pour cette raison que nous souhaitons aménager, à l’intérieur de nos pages, un espace de débats et de forums portant sur des problématiques d’une grande pertinence sociale et scientifique, tant pour le monde de la pratique que pour celui de la théorie des relations industrielles. --From editor's introduction /de l'introduction de l'éditeur.

Cet article étudie les choix des concepteurs de jeux vidéo en matière de représentation de leurs intérêts à la lumière de la théorie de la mobilisation de Kelly (1998), cela dans le but de mesurer leur disposition à l’action collective. Ces travailleurs illustrent bien le cas des travailleurs du savoir dans des productions organisées par projets. Si le modèle de Kelly permet en principe d’asseoir des projections concernant la syndicalisation d’un secteur, tel n’est pas le cas ici. Notre étude nous amène plutôt à mesurer l’ampleur de la transformation du marché de l’emploi depuis l’élaboration du modèle et la distance qui sépare les besoins des travailleurs du savoir, d’une part, et les options que leur propose l’action syndicale traditionnelle telle que présentée par le modèle de Kelly, d’autre part.Ce groupe de travailleurs remplit deux conditions propices à l’action collective : il a identifié des problèmes communs dans les conditions de travail de l’industrie et il en attribue généralement la responsabilité à l’employeur.Cependant, trois conditions essentielles l’empêchent de s’unir en une coalition. D’abord, il est partagé entre une définition de son intérêt en termes collectifs et individuels; ensuite , il est aussi partagé quant à la conviction que la situation insatisfaisante est illégitime. Enfin, et surtout, lorsque les travailleurs analysent les coûts et les bénéfices de l’action collective, le projet de syndicalisation via le régime général d’accréditation fondé sur l’entreprise-employeur leur pose plusieurs problèmes concrets. Les concepteurs de jeux pratiquent une forme d’action collective qui contourne les contraintes que pose notre régime juridique actuel de rapports collectifs de travail. Or, la théorie de la mobilisation de Kelly assimile action collective et action syndicale traditionnelle, ce qui mérite d’être reconsidéré.

In Canada, youth apprenticeships have been promoted as an educational alternative that leads to the development of valuable skills, allows for the opportunity to earn an income while learning and helps youth to gain a head start into lucrative, creative and in-demand careers. Yet, these programmes have remained rather marginal and continue to be perceived as being of lower-status compared to traditional post-secondary educational pathways, such as those leading to university or community college. In this paper, we draw on interview data with former youth apprentices in the province of Ontario to explore their reasons for entering apprenticeships in high school, their experiences in them and their own perceptions about the status and social recognition of apprenticeships. We suggest that policies regarding apprenticeship programmes in Canada need to expand their focus. While emphasis is currently placed on recruiting students by highlighting relatively utilitarian benefits, we argue that more focus needs to be placed on the training offered to apprentices including the commitment of employers to provide quality training on the job, the integration of classroom and on-the-job training and the opportunity for apprentices to move from partial to full participation in communities of practice.

Notes that while Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper's efforts to fashion a new Canadian identity have caused a stir, the multiculturalism of the type espoused by the Liberal Party of Canada under Pierre Trudeau was becoming exhausted. Comments that Harper was rebuilding identity on the pillars of recognition of Indigenous and Quebec nations' contributions, revitalization of heritage and British roots, and valorization of Canadian autonomy and sovereignty, including military accomplishments. Concludes that time will tell whether this attempt to remake the past will have a future impact. An abridged version of the article was published in the Canada Day edition of the Globe and Mail in 2013.

This paper contends that in the "war" to protect the privacy of individ- uals' personal information online, the battle to limit the collection of such infor- mation has been lost. Existing personal information protection regimes, with their emphasis on notice and consent, have proven inadequate, especially in light of the advent of "big data analytics" and revelations of large-scale privacy violations by governments and corporations. The author argues, however, that the war can still be won on another front - that of limiting the use of per- sonal information. In developing this theme, the author explores the notion of "network privacy," which posits that information shared online within a given social circle is intended to stay within that social circle, and is not to be shared beyond its boundaries without permission. Currently there is no legal protection in Canada against the invasion of network privacy (though in several recent decisions, the courts have shown a more nuanced understanding of privacy in online information). One potential source of such protection might be the adoption of the "Oxford principles" formulated in 2013, which propose a new model for regulating the processing of information, one that is focused on the use of personal information rather than on its collection. In the author's view, though, those principles, as well as other proposals, would not provide sufficient protection. Instead, the author outlines an approach that is broadly similar to the prohibition against the use of information relating to protected grounds under Canadian human rights legislation. Under this approach, no action could be taken against an individual - including in the employment context - based on his or her online information, except where that information reveals criminal, illegal or unethical conduct, or causes significant harm to others.

Introduces papers arising from the PEPSO report, "It's More Than Poverty" (2013).

This paper examines the association between income and precarious employment, how this association is changing and how it is shaped by gender and race. It explores how precarious employment has spread to even middle income occupations and what this implies for our understanding of contemporary labour markets and employment relationship norms. The findings indicate a need to refine our views of who is in precarious employment and a need to re-evaluate the nature of the Standard Employment Relationship, which we would argue is not only becoming less prevalent, but also transitioning into something that is less secure.