Dan Robichaud

The applicant union applied for certification.

The parties entered into a memorandum of agreement acknowledging a sale of business and the future intermingling of employees represented by two different unions.

The Board issued a consent order incorporating the agreement, which provided for the issuance of a certificate to the applicant for certain locations, the continuation of the intervenor's bargaining rights at other locations, and a future representation vote to determine the bargaining agent for the intermingled employees.

The applicant alleged that the union breached its duty of fair representation under section 74 of the Labour Relations Act by failing to hold a formal vote of all members on whether to reopen the collective agreement following the announced closure of the employer's facility.

The union had held a meeting where a show of hands supported the leadership's position to allow the agreement to automatically renew.

The Board dismissed the application, finding that it had no authority to oversee the union's internal processes and that the union's decision not to reopen the agreement was reasonable and not arbitrary, discriminatory, or in bad faith.