R-8.3 - Act respecting the process of negotiation of collective agreements and the settlement of disputes in the municipal sector

Section 1 Disposition versions

2016-11-02

1. The purpose of this Act is to ensure, in determining the conditions of employment of employees in the municipal sector, that account is taken of the collective expectations of those employees and of the requirements of an effective and efficient management of financial resources intended for the provision of public services.

To that end, the determination of conditions of employment in that sector must at all times be guided by the following principles:

(1)  as a democratic institution, a municipality is accountable to its ratepayers for the use of proceeds from the taxes and tariffs it collects to provide the public services incumbent on it or on another municipal employer whose expenses it assumes in whole or in part, each municipal employer having as its primary mission the provision of quality services to the residents of every territory served;

(2)  the attraction and retention of qualified personnel require conditions of employment that are fair and reasonable in light of the qualifications required, the work performed and the nature of the services rendered;

(3)  equity among personnel members requires that appropriate relationships be maintained as regards the conditions pertaining to the various categories or classes of employment, in particular, with respect to the wages, wage increases and benefits that may be granted; and

(4)  it is the employer’s responsibility to hire qualified personnel and manage its workforce so as to satisfy its operational needs.

These principles must be interpreted so as not to limit the right of the parties to negotiate a collective agreement or the right to refer any matter relating to the conditions of employment of employees to a dispute settlement board or an arbitrator for arbitration.

2016, c. 24, s. 1.