Latest news with #Bill233
Winnipeg Free Press
4 days ago
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
HR becomes self-regulated profession in Manitoba
Starting Monday, Manitobans will be able to view complaints and disciplinary action against local human resources professionals through an online registry. The registry stems from new legislation. Bill 233, which recognizes human resources as a self-regulated profession, takes effect Sunday. 'We are very happy,' said Lana Adeleye-Olusae, past chair of CPHR Manitoba. CPHR Manitoba will be responsible for maintaining a public list showing the names and designations of its roughly 1,800 members. Viewers will see whether members are chartered professionals in human resources (CPHRs), CPHR candidates or human resources professionals without the designation. Legitimate complaints against members will be shown alongside 'very detailed information about the complaint' and the inquiry process, said Ron Gauthier, chief executive of CPHR Manitoba. CPHR Manitoba has handled complaints against its members for years, but disciplinary action has never been made public. Complaints can range from sexual assault to misusing confidential information and not fulfilling job requirements. Two complaints against HR professionals were dismissed this year. Last year, CPHR Manitoba received four or five complaints, Gauthier said. CPHR Manitoba's internal complaints committee sometimes comes to a decision. More complicated situations can elicit a third-party investigator, Gauthier said. Rulings can result in members' credentials being stripped. Both sides can hire lawyers and appeal decisions to the Court of King's Bench. Past complaints and inquiries won't appear in the new registry. Legitimate complaints, starting June 1, will be added to the online list. The registry only covers CPHR Manitoba members. 'If (businesses) want people that will be held accountable for what they have done, it's better for them to hire people that are under CPHR Manitoba,' Adeleye-Olusae said. Bill 233 gives title protection to CPHR Manitoba, allowing the entity to crack down more easily on people touting themselves as CPHRs when they're not. Shannon Martin, former MLA for McPhillips, introduced the legislation as a private members' bill in May 2023. Ontario, Quebec and Saskatchewan have passed similar legislation. HR practitioners aren't required to join CPHR Manitoba or become CPHRs. Gabrielle PichéReporter Gabrielle Piché reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle. Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
House advances bill aimed at protecting worker rights ahead of possible Trump challenges
A youngster holds up a pro-union sign during a break between speeches at Labor Day festival in Milwaukee in 2024. Maryland lawmakers are looking at state protections for workers in the face of possible action by the Trump administration. (Photo by Erik Gunn/Wisconsin Examiner) The House on Tuesday passed a bill that would ban an effective union-busting tactic, a first step toward codifying the worker-protection measure at the state level in the face of a threat from the Trump administration. 'I'm hoping that more legislation moves through the House of Delegates and through the Senate this session that really advocates for working people in our state,' the bill's sponsor, Del. Joe Vogel (D-Montgomery), said Monday. 'We need to be on the side of workers right now.' But critics said the bill, which prohibits employers from punishing workers who refuse to attend a mandatory meeting where political or religious matters are discussed, will just end up in court over the broadness of its definition of 'political matters.' 'This is another bill that will very quickly and very automatically wind up the state of Maryland in litigation,' said House Minority Leader Jason Buckel (R-Allegany) during floor debate Tuesday. House Bill 233 passed on a 94-37 vote Tuesday. The Maryland Worker Freedom Act targets so-called 'captive audience meetings,' in which an employer expresses their views on a topic. Advocates say such meetings are often used to deter workers from union activity. 'This is the tool of choice for union busters during a unionization campaign,' Vogel said. Lawmakers decry White House, DOGE 'witch hunt' against federal workers The bill includes 'the decision to join or support a political party or potential civic, community, fraternal, or labor organization' in its definition of political matters, and says workers cannot face repercussions for refusing to attend such a meeting. While the National Labor Relations Board deemed captive audience meetings illegal in 2024, there has been renewed concern that the protection might be rolled back under President Donald Trump. Days after his inauguration, Trump fired NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo, a Biden appointee, along with a Democratic board member. Acting General Counsel William Cowen, whom Trump appointed to the role, has already rescinded numerous actions taken by his predecessor, opening the door for a further erosion of worker protections. The captive audience rule is still on the books – for now – but Vogel said 'we don't know what's going to happen under the Trump administration.' But nothing is likely to change in the short-term – an NLRB spokesperson said that there are currently only two members on the five-member board, one shy of the three needed to take any action. Even now, when it is officially prohibited by the NLRB, Vogel said workers are being subjected to captive audience meetings. 'I've been on a lot of picket lines across the state of Maryland, and was even in DC… just last week,' Vogel said. 'And one of the first questions I ask is, 'Are you all being subjected to captive audience meetings?' And the answer, more often than not, is yes' The Maryland Chamber of Commerce opposed the bill in a letter submitted to the House Economic Matters Committee. The letter said the bill 'directly violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments … by impeding employers' right to express their viewpoints on political matters, including issues related to labor and unionization.' 'If enacted,' the chamber wrote, 'this legislation would likely be subject to immediate legal challenges.' But Vogel and others who support the measure stressed that the bill does not prevent these types of meetings from being held – it only prohibits employers from punishing those who choose not to attend. 'Notably, this legislation does not infringe on an employer's ability to share information required by law or casually communicate,' Donna Edwards, president of the Maryland State and D.C. AFL-CIO, wrote in a letter supporting the bill. 'Rather, it strikes a balance, creating a fair workplace where employees are free to form and hold their own opinions without fear of intimidation or retaliation.' This is the second try for Vogel, who saw a similar bill die in committee last year. The House bill now goes to the Senate, where a companion bill has been introduced. But Buckel pointed to other, largely Democratic states, including Connecticut and California, that have found themselves in court over similar laws. 'I regret sometimes that I chose to just not join the attorney general's office years ago,' Buckel said, 'because it is guaranteed lifetime employment' due to the actions of the General Assembly. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
