The applicant trade union applied for certification for a group of employees of the respondent freight forwarding company.
The respondent raised a preliminary objection, arguing that its operations fell under federal jurisdiction pursuant to s. 92(10)(a) of the Constitution Act, 1867, because it operated an international distribution network extending beyond the province, or alternatively, was an integral part of such an undertaking.
The Ontario Labour Relations Board dismissed the objection, finding that the respondent's business was entirely contractual and it did not own or operate the physical carriage equipment crossing provincial or national boundaries.
The Board concluded that the respondent was not a federal undertaking nor integral to one, and therefore its labour relations remained subject to provincial jurisdiction.
