Thursday, March 26, 2026

Asking Why Matters

This simple question keeps our work grounded, just, and human

By Neil Houtman

When I was in university getting a liberal arts degree, we made a lot of jokes about the career potential of students in the philosophy department. To be honest, there were a lot of jokes about many of the liberal arts degrees. The thought was that these degrees led to McJobs.

After four years of tuition, housing, books, and a large student debt, all you would be qualified to do was work at a fast-food restaurant and ask customers, “Why do you want fries with that?” instead of the uninformed, “Do you want fries with that?”

Now, 20+ years into my career as a carpenter, I often ask myself why I am doing things, but it usually has little to do with a grand search for universal truth. It is often more likely related to frustration or fatigue.

While why rarely sits at the forefront of my daily routine, the simple act of asking it—as a worker, union member, and CLAC National Board member—reminds me that our work is about more than tasks and timelines. Asking why roots us again in the deeper purpose behind our work.

CLAC was founded on why. Why do we do labour relations the way we do? Why don’t we join the same organizations as other unions, like the Canadian Labour Congress? Why do we seek to treat employers with respect too? Why do we stand up for employees who are not treated properly?

In the back of the CLAC Constitution is a section entitled “Supplement A: Principles.” It is made up of 13 points that set the character of the union. Each can be read as a response to why.

Here are just two examples. Principle 2, which says “all human beings are created equal and should not suffer unjust discrimination in employment,” answers the fundamental question, why do we seek justice in the workplace? The answer isn’t that it’s part of a contract or a response to conflict. It’s because seeking justice is simply the right thing to do—something every person deserves by virtue of being human.

Principle 7 states, “although employers and employees may strongly disagree on certain matters, they also have shared interests, including the success of the enterprise, their mutual welfare, and broader social obligations and responsibilities. The pursuit of such common objectives is best done through cooperation, without any compromise of workplace justice or the union’s independence.”

This answers the contentious question, why do we aim to work cooperatively with employers, treating them as partners, not strictly as adversaries? We believe neither side can run roughshod over the other. We work in community, and we need to respectfully work out our differences so we can work together.

There’s a reason the philosophy department earned its reputation: asking why has never been easy. It’s a question as old as humanity itself, and the answers it leads to are often uncomfortable. Yet even when the path is difficult, asking why keeps us grounded in purpose. It reminds us that every decision, policy, and conversation matters because it shapes how we serve one another at work and beyond.

Asking Why Matters

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