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Publicly funded workers such as nurses, paramedics and correctional officers will soon have the right to strike in Alberta, but must first negotiate the conditions of any job action, the government says.

New legislation introduced Tuesday in the legislature will force unions and employers to have an “essential services agreement” in place before proceeding to collective bargaining.

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Such pacts will determine which workers are needed to maintain vital services, and therefore must stay on the job during a strike or lockout. In the case of nurses, for example, the agreement would likely detail how many employees are required to keep basic hospital and emergency services running.

The proposed legislation will also ban the use of replacement workers for groups covered by an essential services agreement.

Labour organizations commended the new bill introduced by Labour Minister Christina Gray, who characterized it as an appropriate balance between workers’ right to strike and public safety.

“This proposed legislation is fair to employers, employees and the general public,” Gray said. “I do have confidence employers and employees will able to negotiate this because negotiations are going to involve people on the ground who understand their own unique work situations.”