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Human rights and employment standards are implicitly incorporated into all collective agreements, granting arbitrators jurisdiction over discriminatory discharges.
A probationary employee was discharged shortly after returning from maternity leave.
The collective agreement provided that probationary employees could be discharged at the sole discretion of the employer and such discharge was not subject to grievance procedures.
The employee filed a grievance alleging discriminatory discharge.
The Supreme Court of Canada held that the substantive rights and obligations of the Human Rights Code and other employment-related statutes are implicitly incorporated into all collective agreements.
Therefore, an arbitrator has the jurisdiction to hear a grievance alleging discriminatory discharge, even for a probationary employee.
Arbitration board has jurisdiction over probationary employee's discriminatory discharge grievance due to Employment Standards Act.
A probationary employee was discharged shortly after returning from maternity leave and filed a grievance alleging discrimination based on family status.
The collective agreement precluded probationary employees from grieving a discharge, but the board of arbitration found it had jurisdiction under the Labour Relations Act to apply the Human Rights Code.
The Divisional Court quashed this decision.
On appeal, the Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, holding that the Employment Standards Act prohibits dismissing an employee for taking pregnancy leave and makes this prohibition enforceable under the collective agreement, prevailing over any conflicting terms.
