Union breached duty of fair referral by bypassing member on out-of-work list without justification.
The applicant, a journeyman steamfitter, filed a complaint alleging that his union, Local 463, breached its duty of fair referral under section 70 of the Labour Relations Act.
The union bypassed the applicant on the welders' out-of-work list and referred two members below him to a job at a Canadian Armed Forces base without offering him the opportunity to test for the position.
The union argued it needed to send welders proficient in the 'downhand' technique to ensure the union contractor succeeded on the job.
The Board found that the union's representatives acted arbitrarily and discriminatorily by ignoring the hiring hall's working rules and relying on subjective opinions rather than offering the applicant the required test.
The Board declared a breach of section 70 and ordered the union to compensate the applicant for lost wages and benefits.
Steven Sheppard v. Brian Christie, United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada, Local 463, 1993 CanLII 7849