Grievance Settlement Board
GSB # 589/98
OPSEU # 98A571
IN THE MATTER OF AN ARBITRATION
Under
THE CROWN EMPLOYEES COLLECTIVE BARGAINING ACT
Before
THE GRIEVANCE SETTLEMENT BOARD
BETWEEN
Ontario Public Service Employees Union (Sindall)
Grievor
- and -
The Crown in Right of Ontario (Ministry of the Solicitor General and Correctional Services)
Employer
BEFORE Barry B. Fisher Vice Chair
FOR THE GRIEVOR John Brewin Barrister & Solicitor
FOR THE EMPLOYER Carol Ann Witt Counsel, Legal Services Branch Management Board Secretariat
HEARING February 9, 2000
AWARD
This case arises from the Med/Arb procedure under the Collective Agreement.
The grievor seeks indemnification for legal fees which he spent hiring a lawyer in private practice in respect of a litigious matter arising from the performance of his duty in the workplace.
There is no provision in the Collective Agreement providing for a right to legal indemnification.
There is however, a Ministry policy (Subject Number ADI 02 03 01 “ Payment of Legal Fees “) in which the Deputy Minister, in his sole discretion, can choose to reimburse Ministry employees who meet certain preconditions.
The position of the Ministry is that the Grievance Settlement Board has no jurisdiction in this matter as there is no Collective Agreement right to indemnification for legal fees. The Union did not make any submissions on this topic.
I find that the Grievance Settlement Board does not have jurisdiction in this particular case, particularly since the grievor did not allege that the policy was administered in an arbitrary, discriminatory or bad faith manner. I will leave it another case and perhaps another Vice Chair to see if the issue would be dealt with differently if there were allegations that the Ministry policy was administered in an arbitrary, discriminatory or bad faith manner.
The grievance is hereby dismissed.
Dated at Toronto, this February 14, 2000