Stephanie Moutsatsos

The Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 79 (the "Union") brought a motion to find the City of Toronto (the "City") in contempt of an arbitrator's award, which had been filed as a court order.

The award ordered the City to reinstate a grievor with compensation.

The City reinstated the grievor but reserved the right to seek repayment of wages and benefits if its ongoing judicial review application of the award was successful.

The Union argued this reservation constituted a conditional reinstatement and contempt.

The court dismissed the motion, finding that the City's reservation of a future legal right, without imposing it as a condition of reinstatement, did not amount to deliberate and willful disobedience of the clear and unequivocal terms of the award.

The court, on its own initiative, considered dismissing the plaintiff's action under Rule 2.1 as frivolous, vexatious, or an abuse of process.

The plaintiff's statement of claim and additional submissions failed to set out a discernable cause of action against the named defendants.

Allegations related to employment, bullying, racism, and a toxic workplace in a unionized context were found to fall outside the court's jurisdiction, belonging instead to the Ontario Labour Relations Board or the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.

Furthermore, the plaintiff sought systemic remedies and an investigation, which are not within the court's jurisdiction.

Consequently, the action was dismissed against all defendants.