0408-00-U John Hadath, Applicant v. Canadian Auto Workers, Local 199, Responding Party v. General Motors of Canada Limited, Intervenor.
BEFORE: D. L. Gee, Vice-Chair.
DECISION OF THE BOARD; June 20, 2000
This matter is an application pursuant to section 74 of the Labour Relations Act, 1995 (the “Act”) in which the applicant asserts that the union violated the Act by agreeing with the employer to have the employees’ wages deposited directly into their bank account. The applicant asserts that the union’s agreement is in contravention of the Employment Standards Act. The intervenor has requested that this matter be dismissed without a hearing and filed a copy of Section 8.2.2 of the Employment Standards Branch Policy and Interpretation Manual which states that the place of payment of wages has been considered to be an administrative or organizational matter such that an employee’s trade union can agree to having wages paid by way of a direct deposit scheme. The applicant has not asserted that the union’s agreement to the payment of wages by direct deposit was arbitrary, discriminatory or in bad faith.
Accordingly, it appears that the union has a valid basis for it view that it is entitled to enter into an agreement on behalf of the individuals that it represents to the effect that they will receive their wages by direct payment method. They entered into such an agreement after the vast majority of the employees voluntarily commenced utilizing such a payment method. Having entered into such an agreement the union has a legitimate basis for refusing to file a grievance on the applicant’s behalf concerning the employer’s requirement that he receive his wages by way of direct deposit. The applicant has not asserted any grounds on which the union’s conduct could be described as arbitrary, discriminatory or in bad faith.
Having regard to the foregoing, this matter is hereby dismissed.
“D. L. Gee”
for the Board