Joseph D. Carrier

The Union filed several grievances regarding working conditions at the Oshawa Central Ambulance Communication Centre.

During the intervening period, staffing changes occurred, including the hiring of additional staff.

The arbitrator determined that due to these material changes, there was no labour relations purpose to hearing the grievances of the representative grievor.

The grievances were dismissed without a decision on their merits.

In a grievance arbitration concerning allegations of workplace harassment and bullying, the arbitrator found that the issues had not yet been properly crystallized.

The arbitrator issued an interim order directing the union to provide particulars of the allegations, a list of requested productions, and the nature of the remedies sought by April 1, 2022.

The employer was ordered to provide its reply, productions, and any preliminary objections by April 29, 2022, with the hearing to be scheduled for continuation in mid-2022.

The Divisional Court remitted this matter to the Grievance Settlement Board to determine whether the employment function exclusion under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act applied to the grievor's mental stress injury.

The grievor suffered mental stress due to the employer's negligent delay in addressing a poisoned work environment after a co-worker assaulted him off-duty.

The arbitrator reviewed WSIAT jurisprudence and concluded that the employer's negligent conduct fell within the employment function exclusion, as it did not rise to the level of violence, threats, or egregious conduct.

Consequently, the grievor was not entitled to WSIA benefits, giving the Board jurisdiction to award monetary damages under the collective agreement.

In an interim decision regarding document production, the Union requested unredacted audio tapes of emergency calls and Bell call logs for administrative lines.

The Employer objected, arguing that producing the audio tapes would breach the Personal Health Information Protection Act (PHIPA) and be unduly burdensome, and that producing the call logs would require creating new records that do not currently exist.

The Arbitrator agreed with the Employer, finding that the requested productions would be unduly burdensome and, in the case of the audio tapes, would breach PHIPA.

The Union's requests for production were denied.

The Grievance Settlement Board issued a procedural order regarding grievances filed by Ambulance Communication Officers at the Central Ambulance Communication Centre in Oshawa.

The Arbitrator ordered the Union to confirm the participation of three representative grievors or identify new ones, and established a timeline for the Union to identify the shifts and dates for which production is required.

Grievors who decline to participate will have their grievances dismissed.

The union grieved that a store manager performed bargaining unit work, such as facing up stock and bagging purchases, contrary to a Letter of Understanding in the collective agreement.

The arbitrator found that while the tasks were typically performed by bargaining unit employees, they were also historically performed by managers as overlapping duties.

Given the brief duration and infrequency of the manager's activities over a six-month period, the arbitrator applied the de minimis principle and concluded there was no practice or intention to avoid scheduling bargaining unit employees.

The grievance was dismissed.

The Union brought a motion to adjourn a scheduled hearing because one of the two grievors was unavailable due to a new work schedule.

The Employer opposed the adjournment, citing prejudice regarding its ability to manage the underlying issue in the upcoming fire season.

The Arbitrator dismissed the motion, finding that the grievor knowingly made himself unavailable, the factual situation was simple, the other grievor was available to testify, and proceeding would not entail a denial of natural justice.

The grievance of Marcia Williams was adjourned on consent of the parties.

The adjournment is pending the provision of medical confirmation from the grievor's physician that she is fit to proceed with a hearing or mediated settlement discussions.

The medical confirmation must be provided no later than 30 days prior to the continuation date.

The grievor, a correctional officer, was physically assaulted and racially slurred by a co-worker at an off-duty gathering.

He reported the incident to the employer, but the employer delayed investigating or taking steps to isolate the assailant from the grievor for nearly two months.

The union grieved the employer's failure to provide a harassment-free work environment.

The arbitrator found that the employer's delay perpetuated a poisoned work environment.

However, relying on recent jurisprudence, the arbitrator held that the Grievance Settlement Board lacked jurisdiction to award financial damages for mental stress, as such claims fall under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act.

The arbitrator issued a declaration against the employer and ordered temporary workplace safeguards to minimize contact between the grievor and the assailant.

The Grievance Settlement Board issued an interim decision regarding grievances filed by Ambulance Communication Officers at the Central Ambulance Communication Centre in Oshawa.

Noting that the issues had not yet crystallized, the Arbitrator ordered the parties to address and resolve matters relating to interim grievances, particulars, productions, and the identification of issues by January 19, 2018, after which a teleconference would be scheduled.

The Grievor, a seasonal Golf Course Technician, alleged that the Employer failed to accommodate her medical restrictions and discriminated against her on the basis of disability and gender when it did not reinstate her for the 2010 season.

The Grievor had permanent medical restrictions against using vibrating machinery due to back, neck, and shoulder injuries.

The Grievance Settlement Board found that the Employer had accommodated her in previous seasons but that the permanent restriction applied to all vibrating equipment on the golf course.

The Board concluded that the Grievor could no longer perform the essential duties of her position without significant risk to her health and that the Employer did not violate the collective agreement or the Human Rights Code.

The grievance was dismissed.

The employer brought a preliminary motion to dismiss the union's grievance regarding an employee's layoff due to an untimely referral to arbitration.

The union referred the grievance to arbitration approximately two and a half months late due to an administrative error while processing a related policy grievance.

Applying the Burkett factors under section 48(16) of the Labour Relations Act, the arbitrator granted an extension of time, finding that the delay was not the grievor's fault, the issue was akin to a termination, and there was no substantial prejudice to the employer.

The motion to dismiss was denied.

The employer brought a motion to dismiss the grievances due to the grievor's repeated failure to comply with orders to produce medical records relevant to her claim of mental distress.

The union sought an adjournment sine die, relying on a late-filed psychological report suggesting that disclosure would compromise the grievor's treatment.

The arbitrator rejected the report as a basis for further delay, noting its late introduction and lack of medical rationalization.

Applying the Ontario Labour Relations Board's 'one year rule of thumb' for delay, the arbitrator found presumed prejudice to the employer.

The arbitrator ordered that the grievances be deemed dismissed unless the grievor provided the required consent by the one-year anniversary of the original production order.

The union filed grievances on behalf of employees in the Health Care Department at the Algoma Treatment and Remand Centre, alleging a poisoned work environment.

The parties participated in an expedited mediation-arbitration process but were unable to resolve these specific grievances.

The arbitrator heard from several employees who described ongoing incidents involving both management and co-workers.

Finding that workplace mediation would be the most beneficial solution, the arbitrator ordered the employer to retain an external mediator to conduct a non-punitive mediation involving all current employees of the department.

During a grievance arbitration concerning workplace harassment, the complainant's health and composure deteriorated significantly during cross-examination.

The employer brought a motion to adjourn the proceedings pending an Independent Medical Examination (IME) to determine the complainant's capacity to continue.

The Vice-Chair adjourned the motion and directed the union to encourage the complainant to voluntarily participate in an IME, retaining jurisdiction to determine the details if the parties could not agree.

In a grievance arbitration, the employer sought compliance with a prior order for the production of the grievor's medical records.

The union advised that the grievor had initially refused to consent due to privacy concerns but was now prepared to do so.

The Vice-Chair noted that failure to produce relevant medical information could prejudice the grievor's case.

With the employer's consent, the Vice-Chair issued a revised order extending the deadlines for the grievor to provide consent and for the union to disclose the medical records to the employer.

In a grievance arbitration alleging unjust treatment, harassment, and discrimination, the union claimed the grievor suffered emotional and mental injury.

The employer sought a production order for the grievor's medical records relating to her mental health, arguing that her mental state had been put directly in issue.

The Vice-Chair granted the production order, directing the grievor to consent to the release of clinical notes and records from January 2004 to the present.

The union filed a policy grievance challenging a new deportment policy unilaterally introduced by the employer.

Following an expedited arbitration process, the parties agreed to amendments to the policy.

The arbitrator issued a consent award declaring the amended policy to be reasonable, non-discriminatory, and compliant with the KVP test for unilaterally introduced employer rules.

The award fully disposed of the grievance.

The union filed a group grievance on behalf of four supervisory Ambulance Communications Officers alleging that the employer breached a Compressed Work Week Agreement by changing their scheduled rotation pattern.

The employer extended weekend shifts from eight to twelve hours and required supervisors to rotate through different platoons every four weeks.

The arbitrator found that the language of the agreement was permissive and did not restrict the employer's management rights to assign employees to shifts or vary the schedule.

The grievance was dismissed.

The grievor, a Correctional Officer, grieved the denial of an Incentive Allowance (a good attendance bonus) for the 2009 period.

During the relevant time frame, the grievor was on secondment to the position of Discharge Planner, a different classification with different duties and wage scale.

The Grievance Settlement Board dismissed the grievance, finding that because the grievor was treated as a Discharge Planner and not included in the group of Correctional Officers whose absences were counted for the bonus, she was not eligible to share in the attendance bonus earned by the Correctional Officer group.