The applicant union applied for certification to represent a craft bargaining unit of electricians and electricians' apprentices employed by the responding employer.
A dispute arose over whether individuals performing electrical work without the required licenses under the Trades Qualification Act (TQA) should be included in the bargaining unit and eligible to vote.
The Ontario Labour Relations Board reconsidered its previous Irvcon/Marsil line of cases, which required TQA compliance for inclusion in a craft unit.
The Board held that the status of an individual should be determined by the work they were performing on the application date, regardless of whether they held the required TQA licenses.
Consequently, the unlicensed electricians were deemed eligible to cast ballots in the representation vote.
