A View from the Gallery: A Political Update

After a summer filled with the anticipation of an early election the result was no election call. Instead, Premier Tim Houston recalled the legislature for an early fall sitting. The legislation in Nova Scotia requires the House of Assembly to sit a minimum two times a year, once in the fall and once in the spring.

September 5th was not only the first day of school for students but also the first day members returned to the legislature for the earliest fall sitting in over a decade.

There wasn’t a clear reason as to why the legislature was recalled so early, however, there has been some interesting bills introduced that impact working Nova Scotians, for the better.

Bill 464 The Stronger Workplaces for Nova Scotia Act was introduced and passed by the legislature. The new legislation amended the Worker’s Compensation Act, the Occupational Health and Safety Act and the Labour Standards Code.
Some of the changes include:

• A return-to-work process that will help the employer and employee from the time a worker in injured until they return to suitable and meaningful work.
• Changes to support respectful, safe, and welcoming workplaces by preventing harassment.
• Creates five unpaid sick leave days for general illness and three unpaid days for medical appointments.
• Provides a 27-week unpaid leave that would provide eligible employees with job protections while dealing with serious illness or injury.

NSGEU President Sandra Mullen spoke at the Law Amendments Committee in support of the direction of the legislation but offered a few amendments to make the law better for working families.

The NSGEU proposed amendments that would give all workers 10 paid sick days. This would ensure that families aren’t faced with the choice of going to work sick or injured or not being able to pay their bills. The union proposed changes to move the 27-weeks to paid as well.
The NSGEU also proposed amendments to be clear that harassment includes bullying and the legislation needs specific guidelines for employees and employers to follow.

The government used its majority to move the bill back to the legislature without amendments, and the bill was passed into law. While the bill could have been improved, the current legislation is still a step forward in workers rights and highlights the importance of unions and unionized workplaces.
Without a strong union, many workers are left at the mercy of the legislature without any recourse or advocate on their side. Unions still matter.

The legislature continues with its fall session and rumours continue to build on when the next provincial election could be called. The Houston government did pass a law that would enforce fixed election dates. However, that law can be repealed at any time.

The Premier was elected on a commitment to fix health care. Polling suggests that while people were prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt after three years are growing impatient as surgery wait times, ER wait times and waitlists for family doctors remain high.

People elect governments with the expectation they will serve their full term and do their best to honour their commitments. Has enough been accomplished for Houston to seek a new mandate? Or can the government make a case as to why an election is needed? History books are filled with stories of governments calling early elections, only to be punished by voters.

Stay tuned.