Workplace Challenges
Court backs federal right to provide parental benefitsThe Supreme Court of Canada, saying the Constitution must be flexible enough to accommodate social change, has confirmed Ottawa's right to compensate workers who take time off their jobs to give birth to a child or adopt one. |
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 [ 2005-10-26 ] |
In a 7-0 decision last Thursday, the court rejected a claim by Quebec that the federal government has been poaching on provincial turf by providing maternity and adoption benefits under the Employment Insurance Act.
The case was sparked three years ago by a Quebec government demand to set up its own system of parental benefits.
Since then, the provincial and federal governments have reached a political deal that gives Quebec the power to do so -- and millions of federal dollars to help fund the program.
But Ottawa continued to press for a ruling on the underlying constitutional issues, mainly because of the impact on the rest of the country.
Lucienne Robillard, the federal minister of intergovernmental affairs, promised Thursday the court decision will not overturn the deal signed with Quebec in March.
"All that is going to continue," Robillard said outside a cabinet meeting. "And it doesn't stop us from signing other agreements with other provinces."
The ruling makes it clear, however, that Ottawa is under no constitutional obligation to accept provincial demands -- a fact that will likely give the federal side a leg up in any future talks.
Had the Supreme Court ruled the other way, it would have called into question the federal parental leave payments that still apply in all provinces except Quebec.
It would also have undermined a wide range of other benefits, such as payments to sick and injured workers, compassionate leave, paid job training and compensation for jury duty.
Human Resources Minister Belinda Stronach said it's clear the federal benefits are safe now -- and hinted that some may be expanded in future.
"What this judgment really says is that the federal government not only has the right, but also the responsibility to evolve EI programs as society evolves," Stronach said.
She is believed to be considering changes to the compassionate leave program, in which family members who take time off work to care for a dying loved one can claim six weeks of EI benefits.
There have been calls to extend the program beyond the immediate family, to include friends, neighbours and the like.
Justice Minister Irwin Cotler cautioned, however, that the court ruling doesn't give Ottawa a blank cheque to impose its will in other areas -- such as day care -- that are not linked to the EI system.
"Basically we are where we were," Cotler said. "The court affirmed the power that the federal government has been exercising. ... It does not confer new powers."
Benoit Pelletier, the Quebec intergovernmental affairs minister, agreed with Robillard that the ruling won't jeopardize the province's political deal with Ottawa.
He also took comfort that the court, while recognizing federal authority over EI, also confirmed the general principle of provincial primacy in most social programs.
Quebec government lawyers had argued before the Supreme Court that federal jurisdiction over EI is limited to compensating people who lose their jobs for strictly economic reasons.
That was indeed the case when Parliament legislated the first national jobless payments in 1940. But Justice Marie Deschamps, writing for the unanimous court, said times have changed.
Constitutional principles must be interpreted in a "progressive and generous" manner, she wrote, noting that the role of women in the labour force and in society at large has evolved.
"A generous interpretation of the provisions of the Constitution permits social change to be taken into account," Deschamps said.
"The provincial legislatures have jurisdiction over social programs, but Parliament also has the power to provide income replacement benefits to parents who must take time off work to give birth or to care for children."
Nor can there be any distinction between natural and adoptive parents, said Deschamps. It would be discriminatory to provide benefits to one group and not to the other.
The out-of-court deal reached by Quebec and Ottawa, due to take effect next Jan. 1, will allow the province to deliver maternity, paternity and adoption benefits that will be more generous than those elsewhere in the country.
Ottawa will contribute $750 million a year, but Quebec workers will also pay higher premiums to help cover their higher benefits.
So far no other province has made a request to cut its own deal, although Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario all closely monitored the talks with Quebec.
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