HomeMy WebLinkAbout1982-0083.Bodkin.83-02-14Between:
Before:
83182
84/82
85182
IN THE MATTER OF AN ARBITRATION
Under
THE CROWN.EMPLOYEES COLLECTIVE BARGAINING ACT
Before
THE GRIEVANCE SETTLEMENT BOARD
For the Grievor:
For the Employer:
Hearings:
OPSEU (Brenda Bodkin .) Grievor
- And -
The Crown in Right of Ontario (Ministry of Municipal Affairs
and Housing) Employer
R.L. Verity, Q.C. Vice Chairman
F.D. Collom Member
D. Middleton Member
H.S. LaForme, Counsel
Barrister and Solicitor
A.P. Tarasuk, Consultant
Central Ontario Industrial Relations Institute
September 15 & 16, 1982
October 7 & 8, 1982
January 20 & 21, 1983
i- 2.
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AWARD
This matter involves three separate Grievances
filed by Mrs. Brenda Bodkin. The first Grievance dated
October 7th, 1981 (Exhibit 1) alleges improper den.ial of
the classification of Financial Officer 1. The settlement
requested was confirmation of the Grievor's classification
as Financial Officer 1 with full compensation retroactive
to March 7th, 1980.
A second Grievance dated October 7th, 1981 (Exhibit
2) alleges improper denial of a merit increase on May lst,
1981. The third Grievance dated November 19th, 1981 (Exhibit
3) alleges "unjust and improper demotion". The relief sought
fin the final Grievance was reinstatement "to my former position
as Financial Officer 1 with full compensation retroactive to
November 2nd, 1981".
The evidence concerning all three Grievances were
heard simultaneously in accordance with a memorandum from
Vice-Chairman Prichard dated June 25th, 1982.
The Hearing before the present panel took place over
a six day period during which time 52 Exhibits were introduced
by the Parties.
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The position in question (Financial Analyst -
Classification Financial Officer 1) was posted on June Bth,
1979 (Exhibit 26) as follows:
"MINISTRY OF HOUSING
PROMOTIONAL OPPORTUNITY
Position Title: Financial Class: Financial Officer 1
Analyst
Division: Ontario Mortgage File No: MH 151
Corooration
Branch: Mortgage Finance Salary Range: $16,225 -
S19,OOO p.a.
POSITION SUMMARY
"RESTRICTED"
In this position, you will administer the budgetary
process of OMC's administrative expenses, the Mortgage
Contingency Fund and real estate projects under OMC
management through the preparation of these budgets and
the monthly review, analysis and reporting of revenues
and expenditures. Other duties include preparing and
analyzing monthly financial statements; analyzing the
annual budget and cash flow requirements of the Mortgage
Contingency Fund; assessing and approving claims against
the Mortgage Contingency Fund and Approved Lenders Fund;
liaising with a variety of contacts to resolve problems,
check interest rates, reconcile bank statements, etc.
LOCATION: Toronto
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
A few years of accounting experience preferably in a
mortgage rel.ated area; sound knowledge of the principles
an~d practices in accounting E.O.P. computer systems
and office administration, with particular skill in
the implementation of accounting methods, procedures
and controls, and budget preparation and control in
order to provide accurate financi-al reports; a good
kno*ledge of OMC and Ministry.policies and of payroll
and personnel policies; ability~to deal effectively and
tactfully.w.i'ch seni~or management."
., -i
The Pos
as follows (Exhib
-4-
tion Specification for that pos
t 25):
ition reads
"POSITION SPECIFICATION
2. Position. Code
55-8300-39
3. Department
Housing
Division/Branch
Ontario Mortgage Corporation
I Section/Sub-Section
I
Unit/Location
5. Title of Immediate Supervisor:
vi 1 Revis;z,;,;;;;;er General -"'I
6. Number of Number of Number of
Positions _ Incumbents Incumbents
Directly Directly Indirectly -
Supervised Supervised Supervised
7. Summary of Position:
To administer the budgetary process of Ontario Mortgage Corporation's
(OMB) administrative expenses, the Mortgage Contingency Fund and real
estate projects under OMC management through the preparation of these
budgets and the monthly review, analysis and reporting of revenues
and expenditures.
8. Duties and Responsibilities (use Position Analysis Guide Format
including time percentage for each Key
Duty):
1. Controls the OMC administrative budget by:
- co-ordinating and preparing the section budgets on an annual
basis based on information and requests from various depart-
mental managers;
- analyzing a variety of control accounts to ensure correct
30 fi allocation of charges and reporting to supervisor where over or
under spending has occurred;
- recommending to supervisor corrections or revisions. to budgeted
expenses based on program changes;
- preparing, reviewing and analyzing monthly budget reports for
all managers to inform them of their section's performance and
reviewing and discussing the analyses accordingly.
., i
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2. Administers the financial reporting system for real estate
projects under OMC management by:
- preparing operating budgets based on information from project
30%
managers and analysis of prior year's expenditures:
- preparing and analyzing financial expenditure statements of
the real estate projects to illustrate their current status
for both project managers and senior management;
- recommending changes in accounting procedures and controls
related to property management in order to provide better
internal control and information reporting for management.
3. Administers and controls the financial reporting system for the
Mortgage Contingency Fund and the Approved Lenders Fund by:
Note: The Mortgage Contingency Fund acts as an insurance fund
to protect OMC's investment in mortgages against default.
The Approved Lenders Fund is an insurance fund in the
financial records of Ontario Land Corporation (OLC) set
up to guarantee private mortgage lenders against default
on OLC properties.
30% - preparing and analyzing monthly financial statements by
researching the relevant financial data (eg. current interest
rates, current market value of securities) from banks 3 Province
of Ontario Savings Office, Ministry of Treasury and Economics,
etc. to illustrate the current financial position of the Fund;
- preparing and analyzing the annual budget and cash flow
requirements to advise supervisor when the liquidity of the
Fund requires attention;
- analyzing and paying claims made by OMC for losses incurred
'On default; (eg. in 1978/79 $1,650,000 expended);
- analyzing receivables and payables with the Mortgage Contin-
gency Fund to ensure reconciliation;
- assessing and approving claims against the Approved Lenders
Fund submitted by private mortgage companies;
- ensuring the acquired properties are noted as assets in the
books of OLC;
- analyzing all transactions affecting the acquired propert i
in the fund and preparing journal entries and cheque requ i
tions to ensure the fund maintains the correct balance.
4. Performs other related duties such as:
- providing financial information .to chartered accountant fi
10% who are preparing audits on companies for which OMC holds
mortgages;
- as assigned.
es
si-
rms
. Working Conditions:. Working Hours:
A minimum of
36;; hours per
week.
., . .
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10. Working relationship with those supervised and others (do not include
relationship with Supervisor here - see Item 15):
With financial staff of Land Development Wing - to discuss and resolve
matters relating to the Approved Lenders Fund;
With staff of O.M.C. - to liaise and provide information on budgets
and transactions affecting the Mortgage Contingency Fund;
With Finance staff - to analyze and reconcile O.H.C. payroll accounts;
With Chartered Accountant Firms - to provide information re O.M.C.
With Ministry of Treasury and Economics - to discuss investments;
mortgages.
With banks, Province of Ontario Savings Office - to check interest
rates and reconcile bank statements.
Il. Equipment used:
Electronic calculator, normal desk tools.
12. Knowledge required to undertake the duties of the position
(a) Formal Education:
A few years of accounting experience preferably in a mortgage
related area; sound knowledge of the principles and practices
of accounting, EDP computer systems and office administration,
with particular skill in the implementation of accounting
methods, procedures and controls and budget preparation and
control in order to provide accurate financial reports. A good
knowledge of O.M.C. and Ministry policies and of payroll and
personnel policies. Ability to deal effectively and tactfully
with senior management.
13. Work Complexities:
(a) Variety: Administers and controls the financial reporting system
for the Mortgage Contingency Fund and Approved Lender Fund;
monitors and reconciles the O.M.C. budget; administers the
financial reporting system for real estate projects under O.M.C.
management.
(b) Difficulty: Maintains and reconciles accounting records from a
wide variety of sources for the various funds and projects re-
quiring a thorough awareness of changes in financial policies
and procedures of O.M.C., O.H.C. and O.L.C. Implements these
changes in an accurate and timely fashion to ensure accounting
controls aren't weakened.
(c) Choice of Action:
Analysis accounting procedures and routines, formulating,
recommending and implementing alternative methods of external
accounting for financial transactions.
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14. Importance of Errors:
Errors in analyses resulting in incorrectly prepared financial
statements could result in inappropriate financial decisions by
senior management.
15. Control by Supervision:
Works under general supervision of Chief Accountant/Treasurer.
16. Control by Procedure:
Controlled by O.M.C. Accounting Policies and Procedures Manual and
the Manual of Administration.
1 certify that this is a
fair and accurate statement
of the requirements of the
position:
Supervisor
I concur:
Dept. Official
Date
Prepared by: Prepared by:
"Carol Ann Wilk" "Carol Ann Wilk"
I have read this I have read this
position specifica- position specifica-
tion and understand tion and understand
it: it:
I certify that this spe- 1
cification is prepared in
accordance with standards Incumbent
contained in the Position
Analysis Guide: Date
Superseded speci-
fication dated:
Four applicants were interviewed on June 20th, 1979
by a Selection Board comprised of Michael Keith, then Treasurer -
Chief Accountant, Ontario Mortgage Corporation; Ralph Mohammed
Manager, General Accounting, Ontario Mortgage Corporation;
and Carol Ann 'Wilk, Ministry Personnel Officer.
-a-
The Selection Board determined that none of the
applicants met the qualifications of the position primarily
on the, basis that no candidate had the requisite accounting
experience.
Subsequently, it was decided that in view of the
Grievor's previous good work record'as a Clerk 4 General and
h'er length of tenure with the Ministry, that she would be
offered the position as a Financial Officer Trainee on an
underfill basis. The underfill designation was deemed
necessary because,in the opinion of the Selection Board,she
did not possess accounting knowledge required for the position.
At that time it was Mr. Keith's opinion that with some training
that the Grievor would eventually prove successful.
On July lath, 1979, Mr. Keith sent the Grievor a
letter confirming the Ministry's offer of the position as a
"Financial Officer Trainee for a period up to 6 months" (Exhibit
4). The letter also stated:
"After having successfully completed additional
accounting courses towards your Business
Administration degree and gained experience
with our mortgage and general accounting
system, you will be promoted fully to the
Financial Officer I classification...."
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As a result of a written inquiry from the Grievor,
Mr. Keith wrote a second letter dated August 15th, 1979
(Exhibit 6) which clarified the terms of,employment as
follows:
"Being promoted to the Financial Officer 1
classification is dependent upon your work
performance, not upon obtaining a degree in
business administration. My intention, in
my original letter to you, was that it is
our desire at O.M.C. that you do continue
your accounting courses as this enhances
your future mobility as well as giving you
additional theory to apply in your present
position, which is beneficial to us all and,
in effect, does help your job performance."
The Grievor commenced work on August 7th, 1979,
under the direct supervision of Mr. Mohammed the Manager of
General Accounting at Ontario Mortgage Corporation. Mr.
Mohammed briefed the Grievor on the responsibilities of the
position, advised her of the background of the new position,
and the mann'er in which it differed from the job of the
previous incumbent. He further advised the Grievor that the
Department was in the process of being computerized. Mr.
Mohammed gave the Grievor all available documentation from
the previous incumbent's file (Exhibit 23) with instructions
to the Grievor to review the material and to discuss any
areas that were "unclear". Mr. Mohammed then left on three
weeks vacation and did not return until the first week of
Se,ptember, 1979.
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From the time that Mr. Mohammed returned from
vacation until the demotion of the Grievor in October of
1981, the Parties differed substantially in their recollection
of the intervening events.
The training given to the Grievor during 1979
took the form of "on-the-job training". Mr. Mohammed
testified that the Grievor had no queries on the materials
given to her, and therefore he assumed that she comprehended
the basic concepts of the job. For the next few weeks, it
was Mr.'Mohammed's evidence that he spent approximately two
hours per day reviewing various procedures with the Grievor
and correcting errors. Mr. Mohammed was concerned from the
outset that the Grievor seldom made any input into the decision
making process and that she displayed a tendancy to repeat
elementary bookkeeping errors. For example during this period
of time according to Mr. Mohammed's evidence, the Grievor had
difficulty understanding the basic concepts of debits and credits
On the other hand, her payroll functions were performed to
Management's satisfaction.
On October 22nd, 1979, there was an informal assessment
of the Grievor's performance by Mr. Keith and Mr. Mohammed in
her presence. At that time the Grievor stated that she needed
more day-to-day training. Mr. Mohammed testified that at that
meeting he expressed the view that he was unable to understand
why he should be expected to teach basic bookkeeping concepts.
On November 9th, 1979, Mr. Keith sent a written memorandum to
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the Grievor (Exhibit 7) briefly outlining the Grievor's
formal training program of "theoretical training" and
"practical". That memo read in part:
"As part of Mrs. Bodkin's formal training
program there are two categories of training
to be considered.
Firstly, Theoretical trainins must be acquired
through formal education. This type of training
is being acquired through the continuation of
Mrs. Bodkin's present academic program at
Ryerson.
Secondly, Practical training is acquired on
the job through various methods:
(1) initial job analysis with emphasis
on methods of determining and attacking
job related problems.
(2) consideration of alternatives to deter-
mine proper solutions to problems,
13) recommendation and imolementation of
solutions to problems',
(4) an in-depth study (analysis) of
and procedures of the accounting
data processing systems,
methods
and
(5) constant review of all procedura 1 changes."
Mr. Mohammed testified that in October of 1979 he
realized that the Grievor required more training than had been
anticipated, and accordingly from October 1979 to March 1980 he
spent approximately 1% to 2 hours per day with her on practical
training. However, he noted in his evidence that 'Iwe would go
over the same problem over and over again". Mr. Mohammed's
evi~dence was that the Grievor left many tasks uncompleted,that
sh'e did not review Computer WpOrtS, and that the general ledger
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was not kept up-to-date.
The first formal performance review of the Grievor
was held on February 25th, 1980. In a memo dated March llth,
1980, (Exhibit, 8) Mr. Keith deferred the Grievor's merit increase
until May, 1980 and in so doing commented as follows:
"After six months in the position, Brenda's
grasp and performance of certain responsibilities
is very good in these areas, and her effort and
achievement meets the requirements of the position
However, there are still a number of functions of
the job position that have not, as yet, been
mastered by Brenda and although her effort is
excellent, her achievement is not up to the
standards of expectations of either Mr. Mohammed
or myself.
We have established a plan of attack to resolve
these deficiencies and will review the improve-
ments the first week of May 1980."
The plan of attack referred to in Exhibit 8 was the
assignment given to the Grievor to work with Mr. Mohammed on
year end procedures during the entire month of April, 1980.
During that time, Mr. Mohammed spent approximately 2% hours
per day with the Grievor in the preparation of year end data.
The Grievor was successful in performing the year end
procedures while working under the direction of I"lr. Mohammed.
Mr. Mohammed's evidence was to the effect that he believed that
the Grievor now understood the basic conce,pts of the job after
a nine month oeriod.
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During the month of May, 1980, Mr. Mohammed admitted
that he -didn't devote much time to the Grievor's training, and
as a result basic errors in the Grievor's performance reoccurred.
On May 27th, 1980, Mr. Mohammed and the Grievor met to
review the job responsibilities. Each of the Parties had differing
recolbctions of what transpired at that meeting (Exhibits 9 and 10).
Mr. Mohammed testified that the Grievor still did not have the
ability to identify errors in various accounting procedures.
In July, 1980, a goal setting and review procedure
(Exhibits 11 and 30) took place in which the Grievor was'
described by her Supervisor as a"conscientious employee".
Mr. ~Keith made the written comment in the above Exhibits that
"continued hard work on Brenda's part had overcome many of the
difficulties incurred during the first year in her Financial
Analyst position - further effort is still required".
The Grievor was granted a merit increase in July
which in turn was retroactive to May lst, 1980. She also
succeeded in getting a second merit increase retroactive to
November, 1980 (although admittedly on a technicality).
The evidence of both Mr. Mohammed and Mr. Keith was
to the effect that the Grievor's progress in terms of performance
to the end of 1980 was minimal. With that fact in mind, on
i i
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December 9th, 1980, Mr. Keith and Mr. Mohammed met with
personnel representatives and various options were considered
including the award of a conditional merit increase and
demotion. Mr. Keith recalled that he was told by Ministry
personnel at that meeting that there was a lack of documentation
of the Grievor's errors.
an outline of the Grievor's specific job duties and h
of her performance (Exhibit 14). That document reads
Finally, on February 19th, 1981, Mr. Keith prepared
is evaluation
in part as
follows:
"GENERAL ITEMS
1. Payroll Deduct
in this area.
ions - Excellent performance
2. General Accoun ~. ting - lack of basic under-
standing in tne following areas:
i) Basic use of debits s credits
ii) Contra Accounts - their effect and
inter-relationship on the General Ledger
and Projects
iii) Reconciliation, corrections, and adjust-
ments to General Ledger Accounts
iv) Review of the daily transaction ledger.
This is not currently being done because
it appears you do not understand the
report, therefore the work has been
re-assigned. The lack of understanding
of the report has resulted in errors
being missed.
v) The inter-relationship of General Ledger
accounts such as Rent Receivable, Allowance
for Doubtful Accounts and Bad Debt Expense.
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3. Unable to work independently with accuracy.
4. Unable to grasp complex accounting problems.
5. Failure to follow through to completion reports
and adjustments concerning project and reports.
6. Priorities - First completes tasks, easily
understood e.g. payroll however, ignores
or delays on reconciliation or reports - not
understood.
. . . . . . . . . . .
Position Specification
The items below are functions presently described
as part of the responsibilities of your position.
These are presently not being done or have been
re-assigned to other staff:
i) Co-ordinate and prepare all administrative
and project budgets.
ii) Recommending changes in accounting procedures
and internal controls.
iii) Full responsibility for the O.M.C. Re
and the O.L.C. Approved Lenders Fund:
serve Fund
a) reviewing market value of securit
b) analyzing and preparing JEV's for
on the Reserve Fund;
ies;
claims
c) analyzing and preparing claims for outside
mortgage lenders on the Approved Lenders
Fund;
d) analyzing and preparing JEV's for O.L.C.
Acquired Properties.
iv) Audit Confirmations - Not being done on a timely
basis.
These above functions represent 40-50; of the
position's responsibilities.
Communication of support staff must be maintained
in order to clarify unusual items (site offices.
F inally,
Correcting deficiencies listed previously
re : General Items
Training Items
A
March lath,
further memorandum prepared by Mr. Keith dated
1981 (Exhibit 15) was sent to the Grievor. That
document reads in part:
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The consequences of the above-mentioned errors
result in loss of credibility with the OMC and
OLC Board of Directors and the operating
managers of the various sections within the two
Corporations. This incorrect information also
results in perspective purchasers of our Real
Estate purchases having incorrect financial
information on which to base their Offers to
Purchase. These Offers to Purchase require that
we certify "that the statements are accurate and
should any loss occur resulting from the in-
correct information, OMC is held liable.
Management Expectations of the Financial Officer
and of Yourself in this Position
- Must be able to review reports and decide on
appropriate actions.
- Efficiency and accuracy is essential.
- Investigation and research of unusual items
should be investigated independently.
- General Ledger files must be maintained on a
daily or regular basis.
- Statements must be prepared on a timely basis.
- Change in accounting procedures must be
documented and reviewed with Manager, General
Accounting
Position Specification Items"
. IT
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"In order that you improve your work
performance, I will restate my
expectations for your position:
(Same informati
"After we establ
performance, it
n as in Exhibit 14)"
sh goals for your improved
is my intention to monitor ., _ and review your performance on a montnly
basis. If your performance does not improve
in the areas outlined, I will have no choice
but to defer your next merit increase Andy
the removal of your underfill.
I would also like to appraise you of the
fact that if your performance does not
improve to a level required for the position
within a reasonable period of time, I will
have no alternative but to recommend your
demotion to a position consistent with your
knowledge and abilities."
In June 1981, Mr. Mohammed sent a memorandum to
Mr. Keith in which he reviewed the Grievor's performance, and
in so doing documented numerous errors on the Grievor's part. He
also indicated areas where some improvement had been made and
areas where there was no improvement.
On September 16th, 1981 a meeting was he1.d in the
presence of the Grievor, Mr. Mohammed and Mr. Ke
purpose of discussing the Grievor's future. Exh
the highlights of that meeting as recalled by Mr
October 13th, 1981, Mr. Mohammed wrote to the Gr ,i
effect that she had overstated the profit figure
tes
th for the
bit 19 reci
Ke ith .' On
evor to.the
on the Wellington
. ^
Place
20).
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project by some $45,000.00 to $50,000.00 (Exhibit
On October 7th, 1981, Derek Haley, Vice-President,
and General Manager of OMC wrote to the Grievor citing several
examples of "significant errors' in the Grievor's,work per-
formance (Exhibit Zla). Finally, on October 30th, Mr. Haley
wrote a second letter to the Grievor citing discrepancies in
calculations and concluding that the Grievor was unable to
perform her duties (Exhibit 22). In that letter Mr. Haley
reassigned the Grievor's responsibilities,effective November
Znd, 1981,to the position of Accounts Clerk in the Chief
Accountants Section of Ontario Mortgage Corporation (Classifi-
cation Clerk 5 General).
In her evidence, the Grievor alleged that there was
no formalized training program during her 26 month tenure in
the,underfill position. In the Grievor's own words "the whole
job was never explained to me - I got into it by bits and pieces,
sometimes by asking, sometimes by being told". The Grievor
admitted that for the first several months she was in a confused
state. She complained that Mr. Mohammed was "extremely abrupt"
in his instructions and generally unwilling to answer her queries.
The Grievor alleged that Management consistently ignored her
repeated written demands for merit increases and the removal of
the lunderfill status. She alleged that Mr. Mohammed admitted
having a personality conflict with the Grievor on several occasions.
It was the Grievor's evidence that this~ personality conflict
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affected Mr. Mohammed's judgement of the Griever's performance.
In particular, the Grievor testified that her Supervisor spent
no more than an average of one-half hour with her on a daily
basis and deliberately conveyed to her the impression that her
questions were not welcomed.
In her evidence, the Grievor presented a far more
favourable portrayal of her relationship with Mr. Keith. She
found him to be generally approachable and helpful, but unwilling
to interfere with Mr. Mohammed's role as Supervisor. The Grievor
referred to the generally favourable evaluation of her performance
by Mr. Keith and Mr. Mohammed in Exhibit 11, and to the "excellent"
approval rating given by Mr. Keith as his memo of August Eth, 1980
indicates (Exhibit 12). The Grievor's first concern about Mr.
Keith's role occurred in February 1981 when the Grievor
received Exhibit 14 referred to above. The Grievor disagreed
with many of the observations of Mr. Keith concerning his
evaluation of her performance.
General lY, the Grievor was satisfied~ with her own
performance parti cularly with regard to the year end procedures
in both April of 1980 and 1981. She did express concern that
Management was not totally satisfied with her performance
following the 1981 year end procedures. In her mind she was
entitled to a merit increase on May lst, 1981 based on her
satisfactory year end performance.
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The Grievor testified that she had constant
difficulty with Mr. Mohammed in 1981 and that in September
of 1981 he would not even acknowledge her interest in the
job. The Grievor admitted that Mr. Keith was extremely
critical of her work at a meeting held on October 30th,
1981 but that this criticism was unjustified. She candidly
acknowledged making errors on the job, and gave explanations
in several instances for those errors. In her evidence the
Grievor stated that during most of her tenure, she felt that
she was doing a good job and disputed the testimony of Mr.
Keith and Mr. Mohammed that she was at best performing only
50% of the job requirements.
On behalf of.the Grievor, Mr. LaForme argued that
the Grievor's problems were directly attributable to the fact
that no measurable training program was available to the Grievor.
He urged the Board to give more weight to written evidence than
to oral evidence and that the written documentation demonstrated
constant improvement in her performance. Mr. LaForme argued
that the Grievor was improperly assessed, not as a trainee but
rather as a Financial Analyst. In essence, his position was to
the effect that the Grievor and Mr. Mohammed had a personality
conflict and that as a result she had no real opportunity to be
appointed to the position following the Management meeting of
December 9th, 1980.
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On behalf of the Employer, Mr. Tarasuk characterized
the fact situation as a non-disciplinary demotion and denial
of the position based on the conclusion that ~the Grievor had
demonstrated total inability to understand the requirements
of the job. He alleged that the Grievor had been afforded
every opportunity by way of "on the job training" during an
extended period of time. He described the nature of the
Grievor's errors as "basic bookkeeping and accounting errors",
and that a
beyond tha
lthough she per f
t point she fai 1
ormed well in payroll functions,
ed to make satisfactory progress.
In assessing the evidence, there can be no doubt
that for then first month in the underfill position, the Grievor
was left virtually without supervision. Accordingly, in
addressing the issue, we would discount any reference to that
period of time. There is no doubt that the training given to
the Grievor by Mr. Mohammed took the form of "on-the-job training"
in which we accept the evidence of Mr. Mohammed that he did
spend considerable time with the Grievor on a daily basis at
least until May of 1980. In addition, through her own initiative,
the Grievor had the benefit of formal accounting training at
Ryerson Polytechnical Institute for which she received a Business
Administration diploma in May of 1981. While attending Ryerson
the Grievor completed six courses - two in Accounting; one in
Business Management; one in Economics; one in Business Law; and
one in Business Communications. In addition, the Grievor had
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the benefit of a five day Personnel Relationship course
sponsored by the Ontario Civil Service Commission in June
of 1980, and a two day computer course to enable her to
understand basic Data Processing.
The evidence is clear that in the Grievor's mind
she had a personality conflict with her Supervisor. On the
other hand, we are satisfied that the personality conflict
was not reciprocated by Mr. Mohammed. In our opinion, the
evidence is clear that Mr. Mohammed want ed the Grievor to
achieve the full status of the Financial Analyst position
and that he was generally objective to h is assessment of her
performance. We find as a fact that Mr. Keith was helpful
and supportive of the Grievor's needs and totally objective
in his assessment of her performance.
The job in question involved basic bookkeeping and
accounting duties requiring analytical evaluations to assess
financial statements, budget and other related documentation
Implici t in the job description was the requirement of accuracy
and the ability to make decisions.
It is obvious that the Parties had differing expectations
of the job. The Grievo,r felt that she was performing the job
satisfactorily while Mr. Keith and Mr. Mohammed agreed that she
at no time performed more thanr50Z of the requ.irements of the job
specification, and that her performance was inconsistent.
.+ -c
There can be no doubt that the Grievor was a
conscient ious worker who tried to the best of her ability
to grasp the essential requirements of the job in the under-
fill pos ition of Financial Officer trainee. Similarly, the
evidence is clear that the Grievor made some improvement
from time to time in her performance. She was awarded a merit
increase in July of 1980 retroactive to May as a result of that
progress.
- 23 -
Having reviewed the evidence in its, entirety, we
are satisfied that the Grievor performed satisfactorily under
constant supervision, as evidenced by her year end performance
under the direct supervision of Mr. Mohammed in 1980 and 1981.
However, we are not satisfied that her perfo'rmance was satis-
factory even as a trainee without constant supervision. The
,evidence is clear that she made bookkeeping and accounting
errors of a repetitious nature.
In our opinion, she did not meet the requirements of
accuracy in the ability to analyze financial data with any
degree of consistency. Her performance fluctuated from periods
of acceptable standards to periods of basic errors in accounting
principles. Exhibits Zla, Zlb, 22, 23, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, ,37,
38 and 41 amply illustrate those errors.
- 24 -
We are satisfied that the training program (with
the exception of the first month) established for the benefit
of the Grievor, was a reasonable program of on-the-job training
that was designed to provide adequate instruction. The Grievor's
prime difficulty was her inability to comprehend basic accounting
principles without constant supervision. Her failure to fully
comprehend basic accounting principles made it difficult to
grasp more complex accounting procedures. Therefore, we find
that Mr. Mohammed provided the requisite training program and
both Messrs. Mohammed and Keith provided periodic assessments to
afford the Grievor a reasonable opportunity for removal of the
underfill position over an extended period of time.
On the evidence, we are unable to find that any of
the three Grievances are supportable, and accordingly each is
dismissed.
DATED at Brantford, Ontario, this 14th day of February,
A.D., 1983.
\
c==-
/4-d L CA
‘7
R. L. Verity, Q.C. - Vice-Chairman
“F. Collom”
F. Callon - Member
“D. kiiddleton”
D .~ h;lddlcton - Member
8: 2310
7: 3546