1 total
Arbitrator's decision allowing employer to recall seniority employees as seasonal employees was patently unreasonable.
The employer laid off seniority employees and later proposed to recall them as seasonal employees at a lower wage rate, without the benefits accorded to seniority employees.
An arbitrator ruled that the employer could do so under the collective agreement's management rights clause, characterizing 'seasonal employee' as a job classification.
The Divisional Court quashed the award.
On appeal, the Court of Appeal affirmed that the standard of review for an Ontario labour arbitrator interpreting a collective agreement remains patent unreasonableness.
The Court held that the arbitrator's decision was patently unreasonable because 'seasonal employee' is an employment status, not a classification, and the collective agreement did not permit stripping recalled seniority employees of their acquired rights.
