Yesterday, I wrote an article regarding the efforts of ironworkers to unionize.
Local 720 of the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers filed a certification application on 17 February 2026 with the Alberta Labour Relations Board.
If approved, the bargaining unit would include 8 general construction structural ironworkers employed by Yanda Canada, a Fort Saskatchewan fabrication company that is also a subsidiary of the Chinese company Shanghai Yanda Engineering Co., Ltd.
According to section 147.1 of the Labour Relations Code, when workers file a certification application in Alberta, it automatically triggers a freeze period, which lasts until the application is refused or 30 days have passed after certification.
If a trade union has applied for certification, no employer affected by the application shall, except in accordance with an established custom or practice of the employer or with the consent of the trade union or in accordance with a collective agreement in effect with respect to the employees in the unit affected by the application, alter the rates of pay, any term or condition of employment or any right or privilege of any of those employees during the time between the date of the application and the date of its refusal, or 30 days after the date of certification.
Labour Relations Code, 147.1.a and 147.1.b
Earlier this week, the ALRB published their first new applications report of March 2026. In it, was another application from Local 720 regarding this certification effort.
According to the summary provided by the ALRB, Local 720 claims that Yanda took overtime away from these workers and reassigned work duties.
The union alleges that this violates 147.1 of the Labour Relations Code in that it is effectively “altering terms and conditions of
employment during the statutory pre-certification freeze period”.
They also argue that Yanda has done this specifically as an attempt “to punish and intimidate employees for their actual or perceived support fort the Union and/or applications for certification”, as well as “to weaken the employees’ support for the union”.
In addition to violating section 147.1, Local 720 said that Yanda’s action also contravene sections 149.1.a.i and 149.1.c of the Labour Relations Code.
No employer or employers’ organization and no person acting on behalf of an employer or employers’ organization shall refuse to employ or to continue to employ any person or discriminate against any person in regard to employment or any term or condition of employment because the person (is a member of a trade union or an applicant for membership in a trade union
Labour Relations Code, 149.1.a.i
No employer or employers’ organization and no person acting on behalf of an employer or employers’ organization shall seek by intimidation, dismissal, threat of dismissal or any other kind of threat, by the imposition of a pecuniary or other penalty or by any other means, to compel an employee to refrain from becoming or to cease to be a member, officer or representative of a trade union
Labour Relations Code, 149.1.c
The ALRB has scheduled a hearing for later today regarding this issue.
