3816-00-PS The Corporation of the City of Hamilton, Applicant v. Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 1041; Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1585, Responding Parties v. Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 107; Canadian Union of Public Employees, and its Local 5167; Ontario Public Service Employees Union; United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 333; International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, its Territories and Canada, Local 129 and Local B 173 and Ontario Nurses’ Association, Intervenors.
0089-01-PS The Corporation of the City of Hamilton, Applicant v. Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 1220; Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 5167; International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 772; Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 107; and Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1585, Responding Parties v. United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 333; International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, its Territories and Canada, Local 129 and Local B 173 and Ontario Nurses’ Association, Intervenors.
BEFORE: Christopher J. Albertyn, Vice-Chair.
APPEARANCES: Leslie A. Leroux and Robert Menagh for The Corporation of the City of Hamilton; Mark Gallina, Bryan McCormack and Steve Clarke for Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 1041; Richard A. Blair, Ed Ogibowski, Connie Huziak, Mario Postarero and Michael Gallizzi for Ontario Public Service Employees Union; Eric del Junco, Randy Graham, Kim Cheeseman and Chris Campbell for Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 107 and Local 1585; Nick E. Milanovic, Gus Oliveira and Michel Stokes for Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 5167 and Local 1220; Greg Hoath for International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 772; John L. Stout and Platon Vulgaris for United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 333; Bernard Fishbein and Domenic Marcone for International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, its Territories and Canada, Local 129 and Local B 173; Jacek Janczur for Ontario Nurses’ Association, Intervenors.
DECISION OF THE BOARD; October 2, 2001
1These are applications under the Public Sector Labour Relations Transition Act, 1997 (“the Act”). They are being heard together. They concern the labour relations consequences of the amalgamation of various local authorities into the City of Hamilton (“the City”) and the downloading of particular services to the City on January 1, 2001.
2This decision records arrangements and agreements reached between the parties on the first consultation date, held on September 28, 2001.
3The Hamilton Entertainment and Convention Facilities Inc. Corporation (“HECFI”) will not be treated as part of these applications. As a consequence the bargaining arrangements HECFI has with the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 333 (“the UFCW”), the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, its Territories and Canada, Local 129 and Local B 173 (“IATSE”) and the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 772 (“Local 772”) will continue unchanged, save for the following. Local 772’s bargaining unit covers HECFI and certain employees of the City. That bargaining unit will need to be split, so that it has a separate collective agreement for its HECFI members from that for its members employed by the City. The City employees’ will form part of the consideration of these applications. On agreement with HECFI and the City, Local 772 is directed to inform the Board of the bargaining unit description which will apply in respect of HECFI and in respect of the City.
4As a consequence of this agreement, the UFCW and IATSE are released from the proceedings because they have no further interest.
5The Ontario Nurses’ Association (“ONA”) has bargaining rights for registered nurses employed by the City in its Public Health Unit and for those employed by the City at Wentworth Lodge and Macassa Lodge. ONA’s bargaining units at Wentworth Lodge and Macassa Lodge will continue unchanged. They will not be affected by these applications. ONA’s bargaining rights for registered nurses in the City’s Public Health Unit will form part of the consideration of these applications.
6The Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 5167 (“Local 5167”) has bargaining rights for certain employees at Wentworth Lodge and Macassa Lodge. There are at present separate bargaining units for the two lodges. The City and Local 5167 are agreed the two units should be combined, and they should not form part of these applications. On agreement with the City, Local 5167 is directed to inform the Board of the single bargaining unit description which will apply to the employees it represents at Wentworth Lodge and Macassa Lodge.
7CUPE, Local 1220 has been incorporated within Local 5167. CUPE, Local 1220 is therefore not a party to the applications. Reference to CUPE, Local 1220 should be removed from the style of cause and from the list of parties to the proceedings.
8The Ontario Public Service Employees Union (“OPSEU”) is properly a party to the applications, on the following understanding:
- OPSEU will not seek a separate bargaining unit in respect of the City’s Housing Corporation employees. It will be one of the unions on the ballot to determine the bargaining agent of the bargaining unit in which the Housing Corporation employees are ultimately included.
- OPSEU will continue to seek to establish a separate bargaining unit for paramedic or ambulance employees. If that unit is declared, then OPSEU and Local 5167 will both appear on the ballot to determine which will be the bargaining agent.
- If no separate bargaining unit for paramedic employees is declared, and those employees are included within another unit, OPSEU will be among the unions on the ballot.
9As regards the further proceedings in the applications:
- The City will submit its proposal for the bargaining unit configuration it seeks from the Board and any preliminary issues it intends to raise, by Monday, October 1, 2001.
- The responding unions will submit their proposals for the bargaining unit configurations they seek from the Board and any preliminary issues they intends to raise, by Wednesday, October 10, 2001.
- Any preliminary matters which are not raised as required in 1 and 2 above will not be considered.
- By Tuesday, October 16, 2001, the City will provide details of the numbers of employees in each of the proposed bargaining units, whether they are unionized and, if unionized, what number of employees each union represents.
- Also by Tuesday, October 16, 2001, the City will provide all material facts, motivation and argument for its bargaining unit configuration proposal.
- The parties will meet with Labour Relations Specialist Alex Vigar at 9:30 a.m. on Friday, October 19, 2001 for the purpose of trying to resolve the issues in these applications. However, if any party has raised any preliminary issues, those will be considered before me on that date.
- The responding unions will provide all material facts, motivation and argument for their various bargaining unit configuration proposals, by Friday, November 2, 2001.
- The consultation will continue on Friday, December 7, 2001 and, if necessary, on Monday, December 17, 2001. The purposes of the consultation are to determine the bargaining unit(s) which will obtain in the City, what bargaining agent will represent each unit and how the bargaining agent will be selected.
“Christopher J. Albertyn”
for the Board