Unions Matter: Advancing Democracy, Economic Equality, and Social Justice (review)

INTERNATIONAL union rights Page 28 Volume 21 Issue 2 2014 REVIEWS ❐ ship. The book is divided into two sections . The first looks at a range of general issues relating to the Convention, which includes procedures within, and the workload of, the European Court of Human Rights (‘ECtHR’); the role of international labour standards and case law within the jurisprudence of the ECtHR, the slow and complicated story of the European Union’s accession to the Convention and the issue of how the ECtHR seeks to protect workers’ contractual rights within the context of a legal framework aimed at addressing State rather than private (employer) power. The second section then analyses the work of the ECtHR in a number of key areas, relating to different articles of the Convention. This includes prohibition of slavery, servitude and forced labour (Article 4), freedom of religion and belief (Article 9) and discrimination (Article 14) and crucially the rights to form and join trade unions, bargain collectively and take collective industrial action (Article 11). A number of important themes emerge from the book that are relevant to understanding international trade union rights. Firstly, the book deals with the complex issue of how the Convention and the work of the ECtHR relate to international law and its interpretation by competent organs and the practice of Council of Europe member states. Within this theme the issue of competence and the tensions between the ECtHR and the European Court of Justice are also explored. A second theme is how the Convention, which is primarily a political and civil rights document, relates to labour rights as social rights, and how the ECtHR, through dealing with cases based upon Article 11 of the Convention (Freedom of assembly and association), has adopted a broader and more balanced approach to labour rights. It should be noted that book is focused very much upon a readership with a detailed understanding of, and interest in, the role of labour law within the regulation of the employment relationship. While each chapter is written clearly and contains a very helpful set of conclusions, the main body of the text is detailed analysis of the ECtHR’s jurisprudence, which may make the work inaccessible to the reader with (only) a general interest in this topic. However, the chapters by Lörcher, interpreting the significance, but inconsistent application, of the Demir and Baykara judgement; by Dorssemont, examining the right to take collective action; and (especially) by Hendy, in outlining the procedures of the ECtHR within the context of how trade unions should take cases forward based on the Convention will be of particular interest to ICTUR supporters. tors and taking actions that demonstrate a growing hostility to unions. In spite of labour’s relative success at maintaining density Canada has been following the global trend of growing inequality and economic insecurity. While unions have maintained their density for the last decade, it still marks a significant decline from 30 years ago when union density stood at 42 percent. Still, the relative success of the Canadian labour movement, not the least in its continuous advocacy of labour rights as human rights, makes it one of the more interesting cases to examine, not only in contrast to what has happened in the US but also compared to the significant decline of unions in the UK, Australia, and in many European countries. Unions Matter is an excellent example of how Canadian labour and their supporters advocate, agitate and educate on unions and labour rights. Through a dozen concise, tightly written and well-documented articles, Unions Matter makes the case that unions are important not only to their members, but also as vital institutions promoting a just society and economy. Unions Matter offers well-crafted arguments on the social, political and economic value of unions. While some chapters seem to deal with only the specific case of Canada, such as those referencing its unique legal environment of a Westminster common law system with a Charter of Rights and Freedom, all have wonderful insights for anyone seeking to make a case for unions in a modern economy. Indeed, most of the chapters make a case that is global in nature, that unions and...

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