Obasohan v. Ontario (Children and Youth Services), 2010 HRTO 1690

HUMAN RIGHTS TRIBUNAL OF ONTARIO

B E T W E E N:

Matthew Obasohan

Applicant

-and-

Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Ontario as represented by the Ministry of Children and Youth Services

Respondent

DECISION

Adjudicator: Eric Whist

Date: August 23, 2010

Citation: 2010 HRTO 1690

Indexed as: Obasohan v. Ontario (Children and Youth Services)

1The applicant filed an Application alleging Contravention of Settlement pursuant to s. 45.9(3) of the Human Rights Code, R.S.O. 1990, c. H.19, as amended (the “Code”). The Application alleges an ongoing contravention of a previous settlement.

BACKGROUND

2On July 22, 2010, the Tribunal issued a Notice of Intent to Dismiss (“NOID”) to the applicant. The NOID states that the Application appears to be outside the Tribunal’s jurisdiction as there was no settlement of an application under Section 34 or Section 35 of the Code or a complaint under the old Part IV of the Code that could have been contravened. The NOID directs the applicant to provide written submissions within 30 days. The applicant filed written submissions with the Tribunal on July 29, 2010.

3The applicant’s submissions describe why he believes that he has been subjected to discrimination and harassment by the respondent, his employer, and the ways in which the applicant believes the respondent has contravened a settlement signed by both the applicant and the respondent on March 31, 2009 at the Ministry of Labour.

4Among the materials provided by the applicant to the Tribunal are Minutes of Settlement of an application filed by the applicant under section 74 of the Labour Relations Act, 1995. These Minutes of Settlement have been signed by the applicant, his union (as the named respondent) and the Ministry of Children and Youth Services (as intervenor) on March 31, 2009. One of the conditions of these Minutes of Settlement is for the applicant to withdraw “the human rights application HRTO File No. 2009-01653-I.”

5The applicant filed Application 2009-01653-I with the Tribunal on March 23, 2009 naming the Ministry of Children and Youth Services as respondent. The applicant wrote to the Tribunal on April 1, 2009 to indicate that a settlement had been reached at the Ministry of Labour and that this would require the applicant to withdraw his Application before the Tribunal. In Decision 2009 HRTO 1410, the Tribunal granted leave to withdraw the Application.

Decision

6Section 45.9(3) of the Code states:

(3) If a settlement of an application made under section 34 or 35 is agreed to in writing and signed by the parties, a party who believes that another party has contravened the settlement may make an application to the Tribunal for an order under subsection (8),

(a) within six months after the contravention to which the application relates; or

(b) if there was a series of contraventions, within six months after the last contravention in the series.

7The issue is whether the applicant can make an Application under this section of the Code. In my view, there is no settlement of the applicant’s Application under section 34. The applicant’s Application, filed with the Tribunal under section 34, was withdrawn. The application that has been settled is the application the applicant filed under the Labour Relations Act, 1995 and it was this application that was signed and agreed to by the applicant and the respondent, as an intervenor. Consequently, the Application filed under section 45.9(3) of the Code is dismissed.