[1982] OLRB Rep. March 341
2130-81-M Ontario Nurses' Association, Applicant, v. Belleville General Hospital, Respondent
BEFORE: M. G. Mitchnick, Vice-Chairman, and Board Members H. J. F. Ade and C. A. Ballentine.
DECISION OF THE BOARD; March 2, 1982
- This is an application pursuant to section 106(2) of the Labour Relations Act requesting the Board to determine whether the persons occupying the positions of Senior Coordinator are employees for the purposes of the Act. Section 106(2) states:
If, in the course of bargaining for a collective agreement or during the period of operation of a collective agreement, a question arises as to whether a person is an employee or as to whether a person is a guard, the question may be referred to the Board and the decision of the Board thereon is final and conclusive for all purposes.
- The respondent employer opposes the application on the ground that:
(a) the above-noted classifications are not employed in a nursing capacity.
(b) the classification do not share a "community of interest" with other members of the bargaining unit;
(c) the O.N.A. is endeavouring to broaden the scope of the bargaining unit as described, in that these positions have existed since 1971 and have never been challenged before; and
(d) while the employees in these classifications are employed by Belleville General Hospital, many of them do not work at Belleville.
In reviewing the above points, the Board would note that paragraphs (a) and (d) are not matters with which the present application would deal in any event, but rather are matters arising under the interpretation of the collective agreement, and are properly dealt with through the process of private arbitration (compare Nelson Crushed Stone, [1980] OLRB Rep. Oct. 1500). The issue contained in paragraph (b) is also an issue which does not arise in a section 106(2) application, but rather, only at the time of certification, and is now irrelevant to the position of either party.
The issue before the Board in this application is whether the persons in dispute are "employees" for the purposes of the Labour Relations Act, by virtue of the provisions of section 1(3)(b) of the Act. In this regard, the Hospital's position in paragraph (c) is in fact significant. For the onus upon a party seeking to alter the status quo after a position has for a number of years been accepted by the parties as either being inside or outside the unit, see Corporation of the City of Thunder Bay, [1981] OLRB Rep. Aug. 1121; Niagara College of Applied Arts & Technology, [1981] OLRB Rep. July 939; and Sudburv & District Health Unit (unreported), Board File No. 2055-79-M, dated March 11, 1981.
The Board appoints an officer to inquire into and report to the Board on the duties and responsibilities of the persons occupying the positions of Senior Co-ordinator and Co-ordinator.