Employer committed unfair labour practice by bargaining directly with striking employees via letters.
The union filed an unfair labour practice complaint alleging that the employer violated the Labour Relations Act by communicating directly with striking employees, closing its manufacturing operations, and advertising for replacement workers.
The Ontario Labour Relations Board found that the employer's November letters to individual employees, which offered re-employment and circumvented the union, constituted a failure to bargain in good faith and unlawful interference with the union.
However, the Board dismissed the allegations regarding the closure of the manufacturing operations, finding that the decision was motivated by bona fide business reasons and not anti-union animus.
The Board ordered the employer to cease bargaining directly with employees and to post a notice of its violations.
Teamsters Union Local 938 v. Barouh Eaton (Canada) Ltd., 1988 CanLII 3662