When labour representatives logged into a virtual meeting in August to provide input on the Carney government’s controversial Bill C-5, they got a big surprise. The meeting wasn’t being facilitated by the government: it was being facilitated by lobbyists for a big-business interest group.
The invitation to the virtual meeting on Aug. 20, 2025 came from the Privy Council Office, a government department mandated to help the prime minister implement his agenda.
But the actual meeting was facilitated by Madison Coulas and David Pierce, staff members for the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, according to two people who attended.
Both Coulas and Pierce are registered to lobby the federal government on behalf of the chamber’s members. Pierce previously held six different jobs in the Conservative government of Stephen Harper, his lobbyist registry states, including deputy chief of staff to then-minister Julian Fantino.
Labour leaders Bea Bruske, president of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), and Lana Payne, president of Unifor, were invited to attend the meeting.
The invitation said they were being asked to provide input for Bill C-5, or the “One Canadian Economy Act,” which the government says was tabled to speed-up the development of major infrastructure projects, decrease interprovincial trade barriers, and increase labour mobility.
The bill has two parts, the “Free Trade and Labour Mobility in Canada Act,” which removes some regulations on businesses, and the “Building Canada Act,” which expedites “nation-building” projects.
An Unusual Process
“Anytime they do something like this […] they get in touch with labour groups to get their views so that they can advise the minister about where people stand on things. So that’s not unusual,” said Chris Roberts, who attended the meeting as national director of social and economic policy for the CLC.
“What’s unusual, though, is for the chamber to do the bidding.”
Zoë Abernethy, who at the time was the senior economist at the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), a CLC affiliate, also attended.
“We think it’s a bit strange that this labour-focused consultation is being run by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce,” Abernethy told The Maple. “It’s a corporate lobby group, and it represents the interests of employers.”
The Canadian Chamber of Commerce is an association that represents the interests of businesses and local chambers of commerce across the country. Its board is made up of executives from big banks and corporations like Air Canada, Enbridge, 3M, TD Business Banking and Sun Life Financial.
At the meeting, Roberts cracked a joke that when it came time for the government to solicit industry’s feedback, the CLC looked forward to hosting the meeting at its office. “That kind of got a smirk and a chuckle, but no other comments from the folks there,” he said.
After the meeting, a follow-up email came directly from Coulas, one of the Chamber of Commerce lobbyists, who seemed to be acting directly for the government.
“We are reaching out on behalf of the Privy Council Office to request your review and feedback on a draft User Guide developed to support the implementation of the Free Trade and Labour Mobility in Canada Act (‘the Act’), which received Royal Assent on June 26, 2025,” Coulas’ Nov. 26, 2025 email said.
“As part of the Government of Canada’s commitment to reducing federal barriers to interprovincial trade, the Act aims to remove duplicative federal requirements and red tape that hinder the movement of goods, services, and labour within Canada—while continuing to safeguard the health, safety and security of Canadians, their social and economic well-being, and the environment.”
“The Privy Council Office is now pleased to share with you the attached draft User Guide, which is intended to help businesses understand when the Act applies, how to take advantage of it, and who to contact for help or questions.”
In an email to The Maple, a spokesperson for the Privy Council Office conceded that the Chamber of Commerce helped organize consultations on the bill, but disputed that chamber staffers ran the meetings.
“To be clear, the consultations were led by senior officials from the Privy Council Office, as was the development of Bill C-5 and the corresponding regulations for the Free Trade and Labour Mobility in Canada Act. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce did not write any part of the Act or its regulations, and they did not provide any feedback to the federal government in relation to the development of regulations for the Act,” the spokesperson’s statement said.
“Additionally, the Government of Canada immediately responded to concerns by labour representatives regarding the involvement of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce during the consultation process.” Labour representatives got a second chance to speak about the bill without anyone from the chamber present, the spokesperson said.
Shane Mackenzie, a spokesperson for the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber was “honoured” to help convene and moderate virtual and in-person public round tables in Calgary, Toronto, Montreal and Halifax.
“Facilitating such discussions that meet high standards of ethics is a long-standing practice of the Canadian Chamber and many other associations and organizations. We commend the government on their spirit of collaboration. We are proud to have been asked, and we will happily do so again,” Mackenzie said in an email.
Roberts said he’s attended government consultations “since time began” and can’t recall another instance when an employers’ association convened a labour round table on the government’s behalf.
“It reminds me of the Harper days, when, under Harper, we used to see [business groups] up on the podium next to the minister, making announcements about EI premiums. I always found that amazing.”
Government Seemed Unaware Of Bill’s Impact
Part of Bill C-5 was aimed at removing federal regulations that the government describes as “barriers to the movement of goods, services, and workers within Canada.”
For certain industries, Bill C-5 removes federal requirements where provinces and territories have comparable rules. For example, a washing machine that meets Quebec’s standard for energy efficiency would be considered to have met the federal standard, the government explains on a website about the bill.
At the time of the August meeting, Bill C-5 had already been passed into law. However, the government was still writing regulations that brought the law into force on January 1.
The final regulations kept federal rules in place for a slew of industries, including food safety, hazardous waste, road and rail transportation, and tobacco.
But Roberts said that at the August meeting, it appeared the government hadn’t yet studied all the regulations that such a law would take out of force.
“Again, it was the weirdest consultation, because when we said, ‘Why are you leaving it to unions and labor organizations to conduct this work, to identify areas where harmonizing or mutual recognition would lead to a lowering of standards affecting working people?’ We got no answer,” Roberts said. “It just felt like dereliction of duty, frankly.”
In a follow-up submission, CLC urged the government to take a closer look at the regulations it was drafting.
“The CLC is adamant that it is the ultimate responsibility of the Government of Canada, not the Chamber of Commerce, the Canadian Labour Congress, or any other stakeholders, to conduct proper due diligence and ensure that by recognizing provincial regulatory requirements, it is not weakening existing federal requirements designed to protect the health, safety, and well-being of workers and the public,” the document read.
