People walk past Bank of Canada security officers striking outside the central bank’s headquarters in Ottawa on June 29.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
The Bank of Canada has been ordered – for the second time this month – to stop using replacement workers while its own security guards are on strike in contravention of federal labour laws.
The Canada Industrial Relations Board issued a ruling against the central bank on July 23, stating that it violated the Canada Labour Code by using the services of a third-party security contractor – Pinkerton Consulting & Investigations – days after it was told by the board to stop using replacement workers.
The CIRB first ruled that the bank had violated labour laws on July 7, after it found that it was using contractors from GardaWorld Security to perform work usually done by its own security guards.
The use of replacement workers during strikes became illegal under federal labour law in July, 2025, much to the chagrin of federal employers that had campaigned for years against anti-scab legislation.
Shortly after the July 7 ruling was issued, the bank said it had, indeed, complied with the directive. In an e-mailed statement to The Globe and Mail at the time, spokesperson Paul Badertscher said the bank “complied fully with the CIRB ruling by the deadline,” and that it respects the collective bargaining process.
But representatives from the Public Service Alliance of Canada, the public sector union representing almost 50 striking Bank of Canada security guards, alleged that the bank had not complied with the CIRB ruling and had continued using replacement workers.
On July 14, a week after the first CIRB ruling was issued, PSAC filed a second complaint with the board, saying that it had observed individuals who were not bank employees performing security checks around the perimeter of the Bank of Canada building in Ottawa, days after the CIRB ordered the bank to stop the practice.
The Bank of Canada did not immediately respond to queries from The Globe about why it continued using replacement workers despite saying that it had complied with the CIRB ruling, and whether it was still using replacement workers.
The July 23 ruling from the CIRB was made after a hearing earlier this week in which both PSAC and the bank gave evidence about the allegations involving the use of third-party security guards. The CIRB’s decision states, once again, that the Bank of Canada has 48 hours to comply with the order.
At least 49 security guards represented by PSAC Local 71250 have been on strike since June 23, after negotiations broke down over benefits. PSAC and the central bank have been negotiating for a new contract since December, 2024.