The applicants, employees of General Motors, alleged that their union breached its duty of fair representation under section 74 of the Labour Relations Act by revoking a grievance settlement that would have benefited them.
The settlement, reached after a plant sale, gave certain skilled trades workers the right to return to a sold facility if laid off.
A newly elected union executive believed the settlement unfairly advantaged one classification and successfully sought the employer's consent to cancel it.
The Board dismissed the application, finding that a union may revoke a settlement with employer consent provided it does not act arbitrarily, discriminatorily, or in bad faith.
The union's genuine belief that the settlement was bad was a sufficient and non-arbitrary reason for its actions.
