HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-3717.Lu.19-12-27 Decision
Crown Employees Grievance Settlement
Board
Suite 600
180 Dundas St. West
Toronto, Ontario M5G 1Z8
Tel. (416) 326-1388
Fax (416) 326-1396
Commission de
règlement des griefs
des employés de la
Couronne
Bureau 600
180, rue Dundas Ouest
Toronto (Ontario) M5G 1Z8
Tél. : (416) 326-1388
Téléc. : (416) 326-1396
GSB# 2018-3717
UNION# 2019-5112-0015
IN THE MATTER OF AN ARBITRATION
Under
THE CROWN EMPLOYEES COLLECTIVE BARGAINING ACT
Before
THE GRIEVANCE SETTLEMENT BOARD
BETWEEN
Ontario Public Service Employees Union
(Lu) Union
- and -
The Crown in Right of Ontario
(Ministry of the Solicitor General) Employer
BEFORE Gail Misra Arbitrator
FOR THE UNION Dan Sidsworth
Ontario Public Service Employees Union
Grievance Officer
FOR THE EMPLOYER Al J. Quinn
Ministry of the Solicitor General
Employee Transition Manager
HEARING July 19, 2019 and December 19, 2019
- 2 -
Decision
[1] Since the spring of 2000 the parties have been meeting regularly to address
matters of mutual interest which have arisen as the result of the Ministry of
Community Safety and Correctional Services (now, the Ministry of the Solicitor
General) as well as the Ministry of Children and Youth Services restructuring
initiatives around the Province. Through the MERC (Ministry Employment
Relations Committee) a subcommittee was established to deal with issues arising
from the transition process. The parties have negotiated a series of MERC
agreements setting out the process for how organizational changes will unfold for
Correctional and Youth Services staff and for non-Correctional and non-Youth
Services staff.
[2] The parties agreed that this Board would remain seized of all issues that arise
through this process and it is this agreement that provides me the jurisdiction to
resolve the outstanding matters.
[3] Over the years as some institutions and/or youth centres decommissioned or
reduced in size others were built or expanded. The parties have made efforts to
identify vacancies and positions and the procedures for the filling of those positions
as they become available.
[4] The parties have also negotiated a number of agreements that provide for the “roll-
over” of fixed term staff to regular (classified) employee status.
[5] Hundreds of grievances have been filed as the result of the many changes that
have taken place at provincial institutions. The transition subcommittee has, with
the assistance of this Board, mediated numerous disputes. Others have come
before this Board for disposition.
[6] It was determined by this Board at the outset that the process for these disputes
would be somewhat more expedient. To that end, grievances are presented by
way of statements of fact and succinct submissions. On occasion, clarification has
been sought from grievors and institutional managers at the request of the Board.
This process has served the parties well. The decisions are without prejudice but
attempt to provide guidance for future disputes.
[7] Harvey Lu is a Correctional Officer at the Toronto South Detention Centre who filed
a grievance on January 30, 2019 claiming that as a result of an Employer error in
changing his start date in HPRO, he was not offered a position for which he had
applied via an Expression of Interest (“EOI”) in 2018. The grievor is concerned that
his start date in HPRO has still not been properly recorded, and as such could
influence other seniority-based entitlements. He seeks the rectification of his
seniority date as well as compensation for the missed career development
opportunity presented by the EOI.
- 3 -
[8] Based on the parties’ submissions, it is clear that Mr. Lu’s Continuous Service Date
(“CSD”) is correct. While the grievor was hired as a fixed term contract CO on
December 16, 2013, that is not his CSD. Once Mr. Lu was rolled over into a
permanent full time CO position effective September 26, 2016, his CSD was
calculated based on the number of weeks that the grievor had worked full time, 40
hours per week. Any weeks in which he had not worked 40 hours do not get
counted towards the calculation of his CSD. It was as a result of that calculation
that Mr. Lu saw his CSD change in HPRO to April 28, 2014, and I am satisfied that
is the correct date based on his full time weeks worked prior to his roll over.
[9] Having considered the facts and the submissions of the parties, and for the reasons
outlined above, this grievance is denied.
Dated at Toronto, Ontario this 27th day of December, 2019.
“Gail Misra”
Gail Misra, Arbitrator