The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2004-0342.Perham et al.05-07-11 Decsion Crown Employees Commission de ~~ Grievance Settlement reglement des griefs Board des employes de la Couronne ~-,... Suite 600 Bureau 600 Ontario 180 Dundas Sl. West 180 rue Dundas Ouest Toronto Ontario M5G 1Z8 Toronto (Ontario) M5G 1Z8 Tel. (416) 326-1388 Tel. (416) 326-1388 Fax (416) 326-1396 Telec. (416) 326-1396 GSB# 2004-0342 UNION# 2004-0229-0003 IN THE MATTER OF AN ARBITRATION Under THE CROWN EMPLOYEES COLLECTIVE BARGAINING ACT Before THE GRIEVANCE SETTLEMENT BOARD BETWEEN Ontano PublIc ServIce Employees Umon (Perham et al ) Union - and - The Crown In RIght of Ontano (Mimstry of Commumty Safety and CorrectIOnal ServIces) Employer BEFORE FelIcIty D Bnggs Vice-Chair FOR THE UNION Scott Andrews Gnevance Officer Ontano PublIc ServIce Employees Umon FOR THE EMPLOYER Lucy Neal Semor Staff RelatIOns Officer Mimstry of Commumty Safety and CorrectIOnal ServIces HEARING June 8 2005 2 DeCISIon In September of 1996 the MinIstry of CorrectIOnal ServIces notIfied the UnIon and employees at a number of provmcIaI correctIOnal mstItutIOns that theIr facIlItIes would be closed and/or restructured over the next few years On June 6, 2000 and June 29, 2000 the UnIon filed pohcy and mdIvIdual gnevances that alleged vanous breaches of the collectIve agreement mcludmg artIcle 6 and artIcle 31 15 as well as gnevances relatmg to the filhng of correctIOnal officer posItIOns In response to these gnevances the partIes entered mto dIscussIOns and ultImately agreed upon two Memoranda of Settlement concernmg the apphcatIOn of the collectIve agreement dunng the "first phase of the MmIstry's transItIOn" One memorandum, dated May 3, 2000 (heremafter referred to as "MERC 1" (MmIstry Employment RelatIOns CommIttee)) outhned condItIons for the correctIOnal officers whIle the second, dated July 19,2001 (heremafter referred to as "MERC 2") provIded for the non-correctIOnal officer staff Both agreements were subJect to ratIficatIOn by respectIve prmcIples and settled all of the gnevances IdentIfied m the related MERC appendIces, filed up to that pomt m tune WhIle It was agreed m each case that the settlements were "wIthout preJudIce or precedent to posItIOns eIther the UnIon or the employer may take on the same Issues m future dIscussIOns", the partIes recognIzed that dIsputes mIght anse regardmg the ImplementatIOn of the memoranda. Accordmgly, they agreed, at Part G, paragraph 8 The partIes agree that they wIll request that FehcIty Bnggs, VIce Chair of the Gnevance Settlement Board wIll be seIzed wIth resolvmg any dIsputes that anse from the ImplementatIOn of thIS agreement 3 It IS thIS agreement that provIdes me wIth the JunsdIctIOn to resolve the outstandmg matters Both MERC 1 and MERC 2 are lengthy and comprehensIve documents that provIde for the IdentIficatIOn of vacanCIes and posItIOns and the procedure for filhng those posItIOns as they become aVailable throughout varIOUS phases of the restructunng GIven the complexIty and SIze of the task of restnlctunng and decommISSIOnIng of mstItutIOns, It IS not surpnsmg that a number of gnevances and dIsputes arose ThIS IS another of the dIsputes that have ansen under the MERC Memorandum of Settlement When I was mItIally mVIted to hear theses transItIOn dIsputes, the partIes agreed that process to be followed for the determmatIOn of these matters would be vIrtually IdentIcal to that found m ArtIcle 22 16 2 whIch states The medIator/arbItrator shall endeavour to assIst the partIes to settle the gnevance by mediatIOn If the partIes are unable to settle the gnevance by medIatIOn, the mediator/arbItrator shall determme the gnevance by arbItratIOn When detennmmg the gnevance by arbItratIOn, the mediator/arbItrator may hmIt the nature and extent of the eVIdence and may Impose such condItIons as he or she consIders appropnate The mediator/arbItrator shall gIve a succmct decIsIOn wIthm five (5) days after completmg proceedmgs, unless the partIes agree otherwIse The transItIOn commIttee has dealt wIth dozens of gnevances and complamts pnor to the mediatIOn/arbItratIOn process There have been many other gnevances and Issues raised before me that I have eIther assIsted the partIes to resolve or arbItrated. However, there are stIll a large number that have yet to be dealt wIth It IS because of the vast numbers of gnevances that I have decIded, m accordance wIth my JunsdIctIOn to so detennme, that gnevances are to be presented by way of 4 each party presentmg a statement of the facts wIth accompanymg submIssIOns NotwIthstandmg that some gnevors mIght wIsh to attend and provIde oral eVIdence, to date, tlllS process has been efficIent and has allowed the partIes to rem am relatIvely current wIth dIsputes that anse from the contmumg transItIOn process Not surpnsmgly, m a few mstances there has been some confusIOn about the certam facts or sImply msufficIent detail has been provIded. On those occaSIOns I have dIrected the partIes to speak agam WIth theIr prmcIples to ascertam the facts or the ratIOnale behmd the partIcular outstandmg matter In each case thIS has been done to my satIsfactIOn It IS essentIal m thIS process to aVOId accumulatmg a backlog of dIsputes The task of resolvmg these Issues m a tImely fashIOn was, from the outset, a formIdable one WIth ongomg changes m MmIstenal boundanes and other organIzatIonal alteratIOns, the task has lately become larger, not smaller It IS for these reasons that the process I have outlmed IS appropnate m these CIrcumstances On August 24, 2004 thIS Board Issued a decIsIOn regardmg Mr Tom Power, unclassIfied CorrectIOnal Officer A reVIew of the facts was set out at page four It was stated. Mr Power was an unclassIfied CorrectIOnal Officer at the Guelph Treatment Centre He wanted to go to Maplehurst Complex or VanIer Centre but was assIgned to OCI on an mtenm basIs In a Memorandum of Agreement dated June 10,2003, It was agreed that 1 (a) GATU - UnclassIfied CorrectIOnal Officers who currently have unclassIfied contracts at Guelph Treatment UnIt and who have mdIcated Maplehurst CorrectIOnal Complex and/or VanIer 5 Centre for Women (MIlton) as theIr first chOIce for contmued employment upon the decommISSIOnIng of Guelph Treatment UnIt, shall mItIally be assIgned and have theIr contracts transferred m accordance wIth the optIOns of 3 (c) of the January 23, 2003 Agreement (b) Based on operatIOnal need and m consultatIOn wIth the MERC ImplementatIOn CommIttee, Guelph Treatment UnIt unclassIfied CorrectIOnal Officers m (a) shall have theIr contracts transferred to Maplehurst CorrectIOnal Complex or VanIer Centre for Women (MIlton) The most senIor unclassIfied CorrectIOnal Officer (by requested mstItutIOn, see AppendIx A) shall be moved first and so on untIl all first chOIces are completed. 2 The Employer agrees that no new COSTART CorrectIOnal Officers or other unclassIfied CorrectIOnal Officers shall begm employment at Maplehurst CorrectIonal Complex and/or VanIer Centre for Women (MIlton) untIl Part (a) and (b) are completed for that mstItutIOn In hIS letter of assIgnment, Mr Power was told that he was assIgned to Maplehurst but he was to work temporanly at OCI At the pomt that he could have moved to Maplehurst, the Supenntendent at OCI said Mr Power was needed and that he would not release hun to Maplehurst Between June 2003 and December 14, 2003, no new COSTARTs began at Maplehurst However, on December 15, 2003 COSTARTs began at Maplehurst ThIS was a vIOlatIOn of the Memorandum of Agreement Mr Power was entItled to travel tune and mIleage from December 15,2003 untIl March 8, 2004 Charles Perham, Aaron VmcentInI, Chnstopher Lowry and John Armour are unclassIfied CorrectIOnal Officers wIth vIrtually IdentIcal CIrcumstances to Mr Power Each was transferred from Guelph Treatment Centre to OCI effectIve June 16, 2003 On July 31, 2003 the gnevors were appomted to classIfied staff and assIgned to a General Duty Officer, CorrectIOnal Officer 2 posItIOns at the Guelph Treatment Centre They were all surplussed as Guelph Treatment Centre 6 employees On March 8, 2004 the gnevors receIved assIgnment letters advIsmg that they have been assIgned at OCI Like Mr Power, each of the gnevors had mdIcated that theIr preference was eIther Maplehurst CorrectIOnal Complex or VanIer Centre for Women (MIlton) Agam, as wIth Mr Power, the gnevors were not moved to theIr chOIce pnor to COSTARTs bemg so assIgned m vIOlatIOn of the Memorandum of Agreement Therefore, theIr claim for travel tIme and mIleage succeeds I rem am seIzed m the event there are dIfficultIes Implementmg thIS decIsIOn Dated m Toronto tlllS 11th day of July 2005 I