Janet Trim

The applicant employer brought an application under section 91 of the Labour Relations Act to resolve a jurisdictional dispute regarding the assignment of instrumentation work.

Historically, pneumatic instrumentation was assigned to the I.A.M. and electronic instrumentation to the I.B.E.W. Due to technological changes, the employer assigned pneumatic work to the I.B.E.W. to improve efficiency, which the I.A.M. grieved.

The Board found it had jurisdiction to hear the application and concluded that the existing demarcation line was irrational.

The Board ordered that jurisdiction over pneumatic instrumentation be shared on an interim basis.

The union grieved that the employer contravened the collective agreement by failing to pay an employee for the three days it took him to obtain a medical certificate confirming his fitness to work.

The employee had disclosed a shoulder problem during a pre-employment assessment.

The Board held that the employer had reasonable grounds to require medical evidence of fitness and was not obligated to compensate the employee during the interim period.

The grievance was dismissed, save for four hours' pay agreed to by the parties for the time spent on the employer's premises.