One week ago, the Ontario Court of Appeal issued a judgement that is very significant for its consideration of an employee’s expectation of privacy in personal information stored on a work computer. In R. v. Cole, the Court recognized an expectation of privacy in the specific circumstances of the case, but also demonstrated a willingness…
Industry: School Boards
School Board Update – Court of Appeal Recognizes Employee Privacy Rights in Work Computer Subject to Employer Policy and Procedure
One week ago, the Ontario Court of Appeal issued a judgement that is very significant for its consideration of an employee’s expectation of privacy in personal information stored on a work computer. In R. v. Cole, the Court recognized an expectation of privacy in the specific circumstances of the case, but also demonstrated a willingness…
Solvency Funding Relief Details for Broader Public Sector Released by Ontario Government
On February 10, 2011, the Ontario government released the Details of the Proposed Temporary Solvency Funding Relief for Certain Pension Plans in the Broader Public Sector (“BPS”) (the “Details”). The government previously announced that it would consider providing solvency funding relief for pension plans provided in respect of BPS employers in the university sector on…
School Board Update – The Prep Time Payback Saga
School boards will recall that the topic of “missed preparation time” was addressed in the 2009 Provincial Discussion Table (“PDT”) negotiations. This led to provincial template language that stated “missed preparation time shall only be re-scheduled where a teacher is required by the principal to provide instruction during his or her scheduled preparation time for…
School Board Update – ECE Representation Disputes: OLRB Sidesteps Arbitration Award
In York Region District School Board, the Ontario Labour Relations Board (“OLRB”) considered an application for certification by the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (“ETFO”) to represent the Board’s designated early childhood educators (“DECEs”). In this case, an arbitrator had already determined that the Board’s DECEs were included in an office, clerical, technical and educational…
ECE Representation Disputes: OLRB Rules on Appropriate Venue
In a decision dated November 9, 2010, the Ontario Labour Relations Board (“OLRB”) considered the impact of an ongoing arbitration proceeding on an application for certification by the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (“ETFO”) to represent designated early childhood educators (“DECEs”) at the District School Board of Niagara. The Canadian Union of Public Employees (“CUPE”),…
Municipal Elections 2010: Employers’ Obligation to Provide Paid Time Off to Vote
Province-wide municipal elections will be held on October 25, 2010, and voting hours will run from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Under the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, all employees who are eligible to vote in the election are entitled to three consecutive hours during voting hours on election day to cast their vote. To be…
Interest Arbitrator Awards Wage Increase to Unionized Nursing Home Employees
On September 15, 2010, Arbitrator Jesin released an interest arbitration award in which he awarded a 2% wage increase to unionized nursing home employees. In his reasons, he considered both the Ontario government’s March 2010 Budget and its subsequent directive that, as collective agreements are renegotiated, the government’s transfer payment partners and the corresponding bargaining…
Ontario Government’s March 2010 Budget Directions Considered at Interest Arbitration
Recently, Arbitrator MacDowell released an interest arbitration award involving SEIU Local 2 and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre that considered the impact of the Ontario government’s 2010 Budget directions on collective bargaining. This award is the first of a number of expected interest arbitration decisions addressing the government’s new fiscal directive. We discuss the decision and…
2010 Summer Issue
LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS Student Communication Through Social Media – The Struggle to Define Misuse “Stress” Leave – The Legal Framework FOCUS ON SCHOOL BOARDS Tales Out of School PROFILE Making School a Priority Download PDF