In an important interest arbitration award, Arbitrator William Kaplan accepted the proposal of the Ontario Public School Boards Association (OPSBA) and the Crown to add two specific sick leave provisions to the central terms of the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario (ETFO) teachers’ collective agreements…
Tag: Arbitration
Two Recent Arbitration Awards Confirm Obligations of Faculty During Non-Teaching Periods
Two recent arbitration awards dealing with issues relating to non-teaching periods of faculty will be of interest to all colleges…
Arbitrator Considers “Preference to Full-Time” in Support Staff CBA
In an award released June 29, 2016, George Brown College and OPSEU Local 557, Arbitrator Stephen Raymond considered the obligation in Article 1.2 of the Support Staff Collective Agreement to “give preference to full-time over part-time assignments.”
Arbitrator Dismisses Grievance over Denial of Benefit Reimbursement for Medical Marijuana
Arbitrator Sheehan recently dismissed a grievance by the Hamilton Professional Fire Fighters’ Association which asserted that the denial of a claim for payment of the grievor’s spouse’s medical marijuana breached the collective agreement. The grievor had submitted a claim to Manulife under the City of Hamilton’s benefit plan, seeking reimbursement for its costs. He had…
Arbitrator Upholds Discharge of Long Service Employee with Clean Record for Theft
In a recent arbitration decision involving a case of petty theft in the workplace, an arbitrator provided very useful guidance on workplace theft and the mitigating factors an employer should take into account in determining the penalty. The…
Arbitrators Consider Whether Statutory Freeze Applies to MOU Provisions
In an award dated July 30, 2015 [1] (“CSDCEO Award”), Arbitrator Rowan held that the 97-day delay in salary grid movement for teachers, imposed in various teacher collective agreements by a centrally agreed Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”), was subject to the statutory freeze in the Labour Relations Act, 1995 (the “LRA”). Therefore, the provision could not…
OLRB Refuses to hear CUPE Job Security Complaint
In a significant unfair labour practice case, Canadian Union of Public Employees v. Algoma District School Board, the Ontario Labour Relations Board (“OLRB”) held that CUPE’s complaints regarding the alleged alteration of employment terms by ten school boards during the statutory freeze period had to proceed through local grievance and arbitration procedures, rather than as an…
Arbitrator Upholds Dismissal of Grievor for Posting Vicious Comments about Co-Worker on Facebook
In a recent labour arbitration award, Arbitrator Laura Trachuk upheld the dismissal of a three and one-half year employee for posting vicious, humiliating and threatening comments about a co-worker on Facebook. While the Arbitrator left many specifics out of her decision in order to protect the identities of those involved, this decision serves as an…
Recent Award on DECE Breaks: Implications for School Boards
In an arbitration award released on January 17, 2014, Arbitrator George Surdykowski ruled that Designated Early Childhood Educators (“DECEs”) may not be scheduled to take breaks during the instructional day “unless appropriate and permissible replacement arrangements are made”. The Award makes it clear that such “arrangements” must involve the scheduling of a “replacement DECE” so…
Confidentiality Provisions: Important, Effective and Enforceable
In most unionized workplaces, many grievances are settled before the parties present their evidence and before an arbitrator issues a public decision. In most instances, when a grievance is settled, the terms of that settlement are recorded in written form. The parties often agree that the settlement must be kept confidential and include a confidentiality…