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It has been 35 years since the Unifor Legal Services Plan opened its doors on November 5, 1985. To this day it continues to provide legal services at reasonable rates for Unifor members in units that have chosen to bargain this crucial benefit.
The plan was part of the 1984 collective agreements with the Detroit automakers. The United Auto Workers (UAW), had already bargained a plan for members in the United States. Under the leadership of then Canadian Director of the UAW Bob White, a similar legal services benefit was soon achieved for Canadian auto workers.
The plan was not readily accepted by lawyers. In fact, 10 days after it started it was challenged in the Supreme Court of Ontario by the Essex Law Association. It alleged that the Legal Services Plan was an unauthorized practice of law, along with other charges. The legal proceedings and other challenges were eventually settled, paving the way for members to have a benefit like no other.
Today, plan members enjoy the luxury of having access to reasonably priced lawyers to provide legal services such as wills, powers of attorneys, purchases and sales of property, family law, consumer matters, and criminal defense.
Twenty-eight bargaining units now have the Legal Services Plan as a benefit in their collective agreement. Local unions without the benefit should consider negotiating the plan into their collective agreement during the next round of bargaining.
For more information, contact program director Jaspal Brar at @email.
