0493-01-HS Cambridge Towel Corporation, Appellant v. Richard Den Bok, Inspector and the Ministry of Labour, Responding Parties.
BEFORE: Harry Freedman, Vice-Chair.
DECISION OF THE BOARD; May 14, 2001
This is an appeal under section 61(1) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, R. S. O. 1990, c. O. 1, as amended (the “Act”) from an order made by Inspector Richard Den Bok in F.V. No. 961843 on April 9, 2001 (the “Order”). The appellant in its appeal confirms that the Order was made on that date.
The appeal is dated May 8, 2001. It was apparently given to Loomis Courier Service on May 8, 2001 for delivery to the Board by 9:00 a.m. Unfortunately, the appeal was filed with the Board on May 10, 2001, the day the Board received the appeal documents from the courier service.
Section 61(1) of the Act provides, in part:
Any employer…which considers …itself grieved by any order made by an inspector under this Act…may appeal to the Board within 30 days after the making of the order.
The Act is clear. An appeal of an order must be filed with the Board within 30 days after the making of the order. There is no provision in the Act or the Board’s Rules that permits the Board to extend the time for appealing from an inspector’s order. See National Steel Car Limited, Board File Nos. 2958-00-HS, 2959-00-HS, decision dated January 24, 2001, unreported, Q.L. cite [2001] O.O.H.S.A.D. No. 8; Toronto Catholic District School Board, Board File No. 0179-00-HS, decision dated April 27, 2000, unreported, Q. L. cite [2000] O.O.H.S.A.D. No. 82; National Grocers Cash & Carry, Board File No. 1900-00-HS, decision dated October 4, 2000, unreported, Q.L. cite [2000] O.O.H.S.A.D. No. 168; Ministry of Natural Resources, Board File No. 1895-00-HS, unreported, decision dated September 29, 2000, Q.L. cite [2000] O.O.H.S.A.D. No. 166.
- It appears that the appellant gave the appeal documents to the courier service on May 8, 2001 with the expectation that those appeal documents would have been delivered to the Board by May 9, 2001. The envelope containing the appeal materials was not actually received by the Board until 8:11 a.m., May 10, 2001. As the appeal in writing was received by the Board on May 10, 2001, that was the day when the appellant made its appeal to the Board. The last day for appealing the Order was May 9, 2001, as the Order had been issued on April 9, 2001. Since the Board does not have the authority or power to relieve against the time limit for appealing an order of an inspector under the Act and as this appeal is untimely because it was made one day late, it must be dismissed.
DISPOSITION
- This appeal of the Order in F.V. No. 961843 made on April 9, 2001 is dismissed as the appeal was filed with the Board more than thirty days after the Order was made and thus beyond the time stipulated by section 61 of the Act.
“Harry Freedman”
for the Board