C. Gyles

The complainant alleged that his union breached its duty of fair representation under section 68 of the Labour Relations Act in its handling of his 1976 discharge grievance and subsequent arbitrations.

The complainant had been terminated for failing to notify the employer of his absence, resulting in a loss of seniority under the collective agreement.

The Board found that the union officials did not act in an arbitrary, discriminatory, or bad faith manner.

The union's decisions not to retain outside counsel for the arbitration and not to pursue judicial review were consistent with established practice and did not constitute a breach of the Act.

The complaint was dismissed.

During an ongoing hearing for a duty of fair representation complaint, the applicant moved for the production of notes made by a union official during the preparation of the applicant's arbitration case several years prior.

The union official testified that the notes were either lost, destroyed, or buried in hundreds of boxes sent to the Federal Archives.

The Board dismissed the motion, finding it unreasonable to direct the union to undertake a massive search for un-subpoenaed documents that may not exist or be relevant, especially given the applicant's delay in filing the complaint.