4th-36th Vol. 31-Second Readings

Hon. James McCrae (Government House Leader): Madam Speaker, would you be so kind as to call the second readings for bills listed on page 4, and after this is completed, we would then proceed to debate on second readings, and I will await word as to which bills the opposition House leader might like to have us call this afternoon.

An Honourable Member: Bill 4 to start with.

Mr. McCrae: Bill 4 would be the next one after the introductions. Thank you.

Motion presented.

Mr. Praznik: The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba has requested a number of housekeeping amendments to this act. Although the complaints and discipline provisions of the act were repealed and replaced during the 1996 legislative session, the college has now requested that several other provisions of the act be amended to bring the act up to date. Examples are allowing the college to make a regulation respecting the amount of liability insurance that a member must have in force, increasing the fines for practising medicine without a licence or representing oneself as a medical practitioner. As well, regulatory bodies such as the college are now designated as trustees under The Personal Health Information Act. The confidentiality provision in The Medical Act is proposed to be replaced with one which permits disclosure of information in certain circumstances such as for the purpose of the administration of The Health Services Insurance Act or The Prescription Drug Cost Assistance Act or to a regulatory body in another jurisdiction. The maximum fine level for a breach of confidentiality is proposed to be $50,000, the same as under The Personal Health Information Act.

Madam Speaker, as I have indicated, this piece of legislation is, by and large, housekeeping, and I look forward to the support of members on all sides for its passage.

Mr. Gerard Jennissen (Flin Flon): Madam Speaker, I move, seconded by the member for Broadway (Mr. Santos), that debate be adjourned.

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Motion agreed to.

Hon. David Newman (Minister charged with the administration of The Communities Economic Development Fund Act): Madam Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Minister of Agriculture (Mr. Enns), that Bill 21, The Communities Economic Development Fund Amendment Act (Loi modifiant la Loi sur le Fonds de développement économique local), be now read a second time and be referred to a committee of this House.

Motion presented.

Mr. Newman: I am pleased to put before the House today these amendments to The Communities Economic Development Fund Act.

Madam Speaker, CEDF is a provincial Crown corporation mandated to encourage economic development in northern Manitoba through the provision of financial and other forms of assistance. The fund is managed by a board of directors and general manager and is encouraged to apply strong business principles to both its programs and to its own administration.

The amendment proposed today reflects a change to the way in which the fund creates its by-laws. The fund creates by-laws under Section 15 of the act to (a) determine the terms and conditions upon which financial assistance may be given, including assessing the security requirements, (b) to prescribe the form in which applications are to be received and the information required therein, (c) in the event the fund contemplates equity participation in a project, the terms and conditions under which it may participate and the form of instrument it may use, and (d) to generally determine how the board will function and regulate its own procedure.

Under current legislation, by-laws are drafted and accepted by the board for approval by the Lieutenant Governor in Council. The proposed amendment allows for by-laws to be approved by the board, subject to disallowance by the government. The effect of this change is to allow the board to react to situations within the fund's business environment in a timely and fiscally prudent manner subject to legislation, while providing government with the ability to review the fund's by-laws and to react at any time if they appear to be incongruent with the direction for the fund by government. The simplified process allows the fund to act quickly to the needs of its clients and of its business and is comparable with the method in which by-laws are created in other autonomous agencies.

I urge all honourable members to support this bill.

Mr. Doug Martindale (Burrows): I move, seconded by the member for Broadway (Mr. Santos), that debate be adjourned.

Motion agreed to.

Hon. Harry Enns (Minister of Agriculture): Madam Speaker, I move, seconded by the Minister of Highways and Transportation (Mr. Findlay), that Bill 22, The Veterinary Services Amendment Act (Loi modifiant la Loi sur les soins vétérinaires), be now read a second time and be referred to a committee of this House.

Motion presented.

Mr. Enns: Madam Speaker, the bill that I am presenting before consideration by honourable members on this occasion is one that has not been worked on for a number of years, that is, The Veterinary Services Act. I am advised by staff and by practicing veterinarians that as a result, there are a number of corrections to be made that understandably have created some difficulties, ambiguities and some deficiencies as the bill now stands. There is another issue that has come up in the last little while as a result of a dissolution of a veterinary district that left something to be desired in terms of the legislation on the books under those circumstances.

So, Madam Speaker, while this is not a, to quote my friend from Burrows, I believe it is, a barn burner, it is for the livestock industry and the growing livestock industry that we have and are creating in the province of Manitoba important legislation for the orderly regulation of veterinary services here in the province of Manitoba.

It does also touch, I might add--because of the close relationship that we have with the practitioners of veterinary services in Manitoba with the Department of Agriculture, in a kind of unique way, this is also an act that applies to that professional body. I will have, of course, available to the committee people from the Veterinary Services Branch to answer any specific questions that committee members have, but I commend the bill for their consideration and passage. Thank you.

Mr. Doug Martindale (Burrows): I move, seconded by the member for Broadway (Mr. Santos), that debate be adjourned.

Motion agreed to.

Hon. Harry Enns (Minister of Agriculture): I move, seconded by the honourable Minister of Rural Development (Mr. Derkach), that Bill 24, The Crop Insurance Amendment Act (Loi modifiant la Loi sur l'assurance-récolte), be now read a second time and be referred to a committee of this House.

Motion presented.

Mr. Enns: Madam Speaker, the bill, any bill affecting the Manitoba Crop Insurance Corporation is of significant importance to the agricultural community in the province of Manitoba. Crop insurance under this corporation has been offered to producers in Manitoba for almost 40 years now since 1960. I am pleased to acknowledge and put on the record that it was of course a Progressive Conservative government with vision, a government with understanding of the peculiar needs of agriculture that created the corporation in the first place.

I am also glad to put on the record that over the years, different proposals, different fine tuning of the legislation has resulted that in this last year, and I certainly anticipate in the coming crop year that over 80 percent of our annually seeded crop is covered by this insurance program, and that offers--I do not want to exaggerate the situation, but it certainly offers some level of support in this our major safety net program.

Madam Speaker, there are a number of issues that arise, as you expect, with an ongoing piece of legislation like the one that governs the Manitoba Crop Insurance Corporation. There are some policy changes. As we get more and more sophisticated data with respect to soil types, yields, production, some of this data becomes very valuable and is saleable. In fact, the Crop Insurance Corporation has been selling some of this from time to time and earning revenue for it, and there is nothing wrong with it provided of course that confidentiality and the likes of that are fully and totally respected.

The Crop Insurance Corporation has requested, because the act currently is silent on the issue, that in some more formalized way it be acknowledged as being a permissible activity on the part of the crop insurance management from time to time, if they see it to be advantageous to the corporation.

There are some further minor kind of housekeeping things that you would expect in an act when it is opened up, delegation of certain signing authorities, et cetera. Again, I will certainly have officials from the Crop Insurance Corporation available to committee members as we examine the details of the proposed amendments. I recommend its speedy passage in this committee, so that it can come back to the House for final and third reading.

Mr. Doug Martindale (Burrows): I move, seconded by the member for Flin Flon (Mr. Jennissen), that debate be adjourned.

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Motion agreed to.

Motion presented.

Mr. Findlay: I am pleased to introduce this bill to the House today. The amendments in this bill are generally of a housekeeping nature, and there are four issues. I will address each individually.

The first is agreement regarding foreign licence exchange. This relates to the creation of a new provision which will authorize the Minister of Highways to enter into agreement with foreign jurisdictions regarding exchange of driver's licences. Under The Highway Traffic Act, Manitoba is limited to licence exchanges with Canadian and U.S. jurisdictions, Canadian Forces with European licences and foreign licences held by NATO personnel.

Requests from countries such as Japan, Korea, Germany and France for licence exchange agreements have been received, but Manitoba has been unable to establish such agreements due to the lack of an appropriate legislative authority. All Canadian jurisdictions other than Manitoba have bilateral or unilateral licence agreements with foreign countries like the ones I just mentioned: Japan, Korea, Germany and France.

When an individual has exchanged a foreign licence for a licence in another Canadian jurisdiction, let us say B.C., that licence is recognized throughout Canada and may be exchanged for any other licence in any Canadian jurisdiction.

The proposed amendments will allow the Minister of Highways in Manitoba to negotiate agreements with individual foreign jurisdictions. Licence reciprocity will be considered only where there is sufficient proof that the foreign country's licence qualification procedures are at least equivalent or exceed Manitoba's current licence qualification restrictions. Reciprocity will also be limited to Class 5, which is car and light truck licences, or Class 6 licences which are for motorcyclists. If a person would like a higher class of licence to drive a taxi or a semitrailer, for example, they will be required to undergo further driver licence examinations in Manitoba.

These amendments are in keeping with government's efforts to establish Manitoba as an aggressive player in the global marketplace. Failure to provide reciprocity licences exchange agreements with foreign jurisdictions could be seen as a deterrent to trade and immigration, especially in light of the move by two such agreements by all other Canadian jurisdictions.

The second amendment proposal involves repeal of an economic regulatory measure in the trucking industry. Currently a for-hire motor carrier is required to hold a fidelity bond for COD shipments, and the bond covers the carrier's legal liability for money it collects on behalf of shippers for COD shipments.

There are a number of reasons why the department is repealing the requirement for a motor carrier to hold the fidelity bond. The two primary reasons are that the bond is an economic regulatory measure that is inappropriate in Manitoba's deregulated trucking environment, and, second is that the appeal of this requirement for the fidelity bond is consistent completely with what Alberta and Saskatchewan have just done regarding fidelity bonds there. I guess, I could throw in a third item. In 15 years of having a requirement for that fidelity bond, there are only three known instances where it was actually used in the entire industry, over 15 years.

By eliminating the fidelity bond requirement, carriers will be relieved of this unnecessary expense and operate more efficiently. The elimination of unnecessary costs for carriers is consistent with my department's mission to provide an efficient transportation system and the province's strategy to promote economic growth by streamlining regulation and the province's desire to harmonize trucking regulations across the country.

The third issue that is to be dealt with in this bill involves the amendments to the release-of-information provision, specifically regarding medical information, to ensure that this act, The Highway Traffic Act, is consistent with the new Personal Health Information Act. The existing release of information revisions under The Highway Traffic Act do not allow a person access to their medical records unless consent is received from the physician who supplied the report. This approach is inconsistent with the individual's right of access to personal health information under the new Personal Health Information Act.

Under PHIA, an individual can only be denied access to his or her own personal health information in certain limited circumstances. These include situations where knowledge of the information could be expected to endanger the person or another person, and, secondly, disclosure of the information could be expected to identify a third party who supplied the information under circumstances where confidentiality was reasonably expected.

The department's legal counsel has advised that the release of medical information provides provisions under the HTA, The Highway Traffic Act, should be consistent with those of the PHIA, The Personal Health Information Act. Accordingly, we are making these changes necessary to eliminate the discrepancies.

The fourth and last issue of this bill relates to the repeal of some unproclaimed amendments dating back to 1985. They relate to revised definition of a commercial vehicle and the requirements regarding the registration of leased public vehicles. These amendments are no longer relevant as the vehicle registration part was rewritten in 1994 as part of MPI's Autopac 2000 project.

A complete description of the amendments I have outlined is provided in the summary to the spreadsheet package which I will be providing to my opposition colleagues. I look forward to discussing the bill in greater detail in legislative committee, and I recommend this, Madam Speaker, to the House, and to my critic opposite for speedy passage. Thank you.

Mr. Gerard Jennissen (Flin Flon): I move, seconded by the member for Broadway (Mr. Santos), that debate be now adjourned.

Motion agreed to.

Hon. Linda McIntosh (Minister of Education and Training): I move, seconded by the Minister of Natural Resources (Mr. Cummings), that Bill 26, The Teachers' Society Amendment Act; Loi modifiant la Loi sur l'Association des enseignants du Manitoba, be now read a second time and referred to a committee of this House.

Motion presented.

Mrs. McIntosh: Madam Speaker, I have the pleasure of presenting a bill which involves amendments to The Teachers' Society Act. These amendments originated from a direct request by the executive of the Manitoba Teachers' Society. The bill contains amendments which the society believes would more accurately and realistically reflect its current organization and services.

The bill before you involves amendments to the election procedures of the Teachers' Society which the society feels would enhance accountability to their general membership and democratize their organization. To that end, Madam Speaker, the society has requested that a voting by members at large be allowed, rather than voting by delegates for the election of the president. This would allow all members to be more involved in the political process of the MTS presidency. Without this amendment, the annual general meeting of the Manitoba Teachers' Society would remain as the vehicle for selection of the president.

In addition, MTS has asked that the positions of president designate and past president be eliminated. This gives greater authority to the president, him or herself, and these proposed amendments to The Manitoba Teachers' Society Act will enable the teachers' organization to better govern its affairs according to the wishes of its members. As a result, officers and elected representatives will be more accountable to the members and equity among the different regions of the province will be improved.

At present, Madam Speaker, The Manitoba Teachers' Society Act affords the same rights, privileges and benefits of active membership to the category of associate members, including student teachers. This creates expectations that the Manitoba Teachers' Society cannot realistically fulfill. Section 6 of the act would be divided into two sections, one dealing with certified teachers who do not qualify for active membership and a second category which deals with student teachers in the Faculties of Education. As well, Section 5(5) of the act will be repealed. The proposed changes, as requested by the society, would more accurately reflect the services and benefits that the Teachers' Society believes it is realistically capable of providing to its associate members.

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There are also housekeeping issues which the Manitoba Teachers' Society has requested that government support. These items include amending Section 9 of the act so that the provincial council can establish new or alter the boundaries of existing teachers' electoral divisions according to the by-laws of the organization, rather than according to inspectoral divisions, as there are no longer inspectoral divisions.

In addition, the society has asked that school divisions and/or districts be required to provide teacher information; that is, teachers' names and home address, employment status, school address. They have been asked that that information be provided so that the register of members can be kept current. The Manitoba Teachers' Society feels that this proposal would provide more timely and accurate information than is presently the case.

So, Madam Speaker, I am pleased to present this bill. This bill is, I believe, something that will benefit teachers, is desired by teachers, and supported by all of us who support teachers. Thank you.

Mr. Doug Martindale (Burrows): Madam Speaker, I move, seconded by the member for Broadway (Mr. Santos), that debate be adjourned.

Motion agreed to.

Hon. Harold Gilleshammer (Minister of Labour): I move, seconded by the Minister of Rural Development (Mr. Derkach), that Bill 28, The Employment Standards Code and Consequential Amendments (Code des normes d'emploi et modifications corrélatives), be now read a second time and be referred to a committee of this House.

Motion presented.

Mr. Gilleshammer: Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to introduce Bill 28 which proposes to consolidate several existing statutes relating to employment standards. These would be The Employment Standards Act, which was enacted in its present form in 1957, The Vacations With Pay Act, which was enacted in 1947, and The Payment of Wages Act, which was adopted in 1970. The existing acts relate to much the same subject matter, but in many cases their definitions, methods of administration and enforcement, procedures and other provisions are redundant, outdated or inconsistent with one another. This has often resulted in difficulties for employers and employees whose rights and obligations under the legislation have not always been as clear as they might be. It has also posed problems for administrators of the legislation in terms of enforcing the law and communicating to affected parties their rights and obligations.

For these reasons it is being proposed that the three previously noted labour standards statutes be consolidated into a single unified employment standards code. The inconsistencies and redundancies in the legislation were recognized many years ago. As a result, a number of initiatives to consolidate the statutes were commenced over the last 20 years or so but were never completed.

This current initiative began in 1996 with the departmental development of the proposed code in consultation with the office of Legislative Counsel. Following completion of the first draft of the code in June 1997, I requested the Manitoba Labour Management Review Committee, which consists of the representatives of employer and employee organizations in this province, to review the code and provide me with advice and recommendations. The LMRC undertook a thorough clause-by-clause review of the proposed code and reported back to me in November of 1997. The committee identified about 30 provisions with respect to which they had concerns or required clarification. As a result, further consultations between the committee and the department were undertaken to address these matters.

I am very pleased to note that in the course of the consolidative process, all concerns were addressed and that with perhaps one or two exceptions the proposed employment standards code is being endorsed by the LMRC. I would also like to note that as a result of this co-operative process, a new provision has been added to the code that will require consultation with representatives of employers and employees prior to new regulations being enacted, except in circumstances considered to be of an urgent nature. The consultative process in this case worked exceptionally well, and I am very grateful to the LMRC for its contribution to the process.

In summary, I suggest that the proposed code results in the following improvements over the existing statute it is designed to replace: It restructures and streamlines the legislation to make it easier to understand and to administer; it co-ordinates definitions and eliminates redundancies and inconsistencies; it updates the legislation and eliminates outdated provisions; it provides the opportunities for more effective and efficient enforcement of the law; it maintains the existing policy scope of the legislation; it preserves the basic balance of rights and obligations in both employers and employees; it requires consultation with representatives of employers and employees prior to the enactment of new legislation.

I would like to highlight and explain some of the specific changes contained in the code. First, the overtime provisions are being amended to allow employers and employees to be able to agree to have the employee take time off with pay instead of being paid overtime wages. The time off would equate to 150 percent of the number of overtime hours worked. Existing legislation requires payment of time and a half for overtime hours worked and does not specifically allow for the option of taking time off with pay. This change, in fact, reflects what is the current practice in many workplaces.

A second change relates to the way vacation pay is to be calculated. Under the proposed code an employee who is entitled to a two-week vacation will be paid 4 percent of the wages earned in the year that the vacation entitlement was earned. This would be 6 percent where an employee was entitled to a three-week vacation. All other jurisdictions in Canada utilize this approach. It is easier for employers and employees to understand and facilitates its enforcement by Employment Standards officers.

Generally this change should have no significant impact on the rights and obligations of employers and employees. Employees who move from part-time to full-time work may be entitled to less vacation pay than they would otherwise be entitled to in the first year following their change of status. The opposite would be the case where an employee moved from full-time to part-time work. Requirements relating to the minimum payment to employees who are called to work on a regular day off are being modified. At present an employee must be paid for at least three hours of work at the general minimum wage rate. Under the proposed code the employee would have to be paid for three hours of work at his or her regular rate of pay. This would not apply where an employee's regular hours of work on a regular work day were less than three hours.

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Procedures relating to the processing of complaints involving failure to give notice of termination of employment will be standardized and streamlined. At present, employee complaints are filed and processed under The Payment of Wages Act. However, since that act does not accommodate employer complaints, any claims made by employers must be filed under the provisions of The Employment Standards Act that are somewhat cumbersome and outdated.

Under the proposed code, all complaints including those for failure to give the necessary notice of termination of employment will be filed and processed in a uniform manner. This will make the legislation more understandable to all affected persons and will improve the administration of the code.

A new provision in the code would require the payment of administrative costs by an employer or employee against whom a payment of wages order is made. This would not apply in cases that are resolved prior to a formal payment of wages order being issued. I might point out that in practice close to 90 percent of complaints are resolved without the need to issue a formal payment of wages order. Administrative costs would be the greater of $100 or 10 percent of the wages found owing up to a maximum of $1,000. The general intent of provisions of this kind is to serve as a deterrent against noncompliance and to recover some portion of the costs associated with administering the law. Legislation of this kind, I might add, is enforced in several Canadian jurisdictions including Saskatchewan and Alberta.

A further new provision will require the payment of interest and unpaid wages in certain cases on any money held in trust by the director of Employment Standards. While the details will be dealt with in the regulations, interest would only be payable in cases where a formal payment of wages order has been made. As I indicated earlier, about 90 percent of complaints are resolved prior to a formal order for the payment of wages being made. This change is intended not only to serve as a deterrent against noncompliance but also to ensure that the person owed the money receives the full amount to which he or she is rightfully entitled. Several provinces, including Saskatchewan and British Columbia, have similar legislation relating to the payment of interest on unpaid wages.

Another amendment provides that claims for unpaid wages will have priority over the claims of other creditors up to a maximum of $2,500. For amounts above this, wage claims will have the same priority as the claims of other ordinary creditors. At present, claims for unpaid wages have a priority up to a maximum of $2,000. The change only updates the current provision.

The new code will also increase fine levels that have not been updated for 30 years or longer. There is a new provision that requires the minister, except in case of emergency or urgent matters, to consult with representatives of employers and employees and other appropriate persons with respect to any proposed new regulations.

While this provision was not included in the original proposed code, it has been a stated policy of this government to consult with stakeholders prior to adopting any new regulations. In any case, on the recommendation of the Labour Management Review Committee, this policy will now be legislated into the code. Lastly, several additional amendments relate to improving the enforcement and administration of the legislation. These include strengthening provisions respecting the authority of the director of Employment Standards in the serving on third parties' demands for the payment of money, improving the ability of the department to enforce financing statements registered against an employer under The Personal Property Security Act, providing for the ability to file a notice claiming an interest in Crown lands where the employer has property on the land, and authorizing the director of Employment Standards to effect settlements of differences between employers and employees and to receive and pay out money in the settlement of those differences.

Those in summary are some of the more significant changes that have been included in the new code. As I indicated earlier, most of the changes are aimed at clarifying the legislation by removing redundancies and inconsistencies, by updating provisions and by streamlining procedures. Other changes will improve the administration and enforcement of the legislation and simplify the law with respect to the rights and obligations of employers and employees.

I would once again like to thank the Manitoba Labour Management Review Committee for its invaluable assistance in the preparation of the code and for its endorsement of the code. I have been made aware that a number of very talented and experienced labour relations practitioners devoted a considerable amount of time and effort to making this important legislative initiative a better product. In particular, I would like to express my gratitude to Mr. Wally Fox-Decent, the chairperson of the committee, and to Ms. Candace Bishoff and Mr. Rob Hilliard, who represented and met with the respective constituents on many occasions.

This resulted in providing my department with sound advice and recommendations. Their efforts demonstrate how well the consolidative process can work to the mutual benefit of all stakeholders. In conclusion, I firmly believe that Bill 28 represents a very positive step towards the development of labour legislation in this province and commend it to the Assembly for approval. Thank you.

Mr. Doug Martindale (Burrows): I move, seconded by the member for St. Johns (Mr. Mackintosh), that debate be adjourned.

Motion agreed to.