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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-2095.Union Grievance.05-01-27 Decision 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# 2002-2095 UNION# 2002-0999-0028 IN THE MATTER OF AN ARBITRATION Under THE CROWN EMPLOYEES COLLECTIVE BARGAINING ACT Before THE GRIEVANCE SETTLEMENT BOARD BETWEEN Ontano PublIc ServIce Employees Umon (Umon Gnevance) Union - and - The Crown III RIght of Ontano (Mimstry ofCommumty 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 Greg GledhIll Staff RelatIOns Officer Mimstry of Commumty Safety and CorrectIOnal ServIces HEARING January 26 2005 2 DeCISIon In September of 1996 the Mimstry of CorrectIOnal ServIces notIfied the Umon and employees at a number of provIncIal correctIOnal InstItutIOns that theIr facIlItIes would be closed and/or restructured over the next few years On June 6 2000 and June 29 2000 the Umon filed polIcy and IndIVIdual gnevances that alleged vanous breaches of the collectIve agreement IncludIng artIcle 6 and artIcle 31 15 as well as gnevances relatIng to the fillIng of correctIOnal officer posItIOns In response to these gnevances the partIes entered Into dIscussIOns and ultImately agreed upon two Memoranda of Settlement concermng the applIcatIOn of the collectIve agreement dunng the "first phase of the Mimstry's transItIOn" One memorandum, dated May 3 2000 (hereInafter referred to as "MERC 1" (Mimstry Employment RelatIOns CommIttee)) outlIned condItIOns for the correctIOnal officers whIle the second, dated July 19 2001 (hereInafter referred to as "MERC 2") provIded for the non-correctIOnal officer staff Both agreements were subject to ratIficatIOn by respectIve pnncIples and settled all of the gnevances IdentIfied In the related MERC appendIces, filed up to that pOInt In tIme WhIle It was agreed In each case that the settlements were "wIthout prejUdICe or precedent to posItIOns eIther the umon or the employer may take on the same Issues In future dIscussIOns" the partIes recogmzed that dIsputes mIght anse regardIng the ImplementatIOn of the memoranda. AccordIngly they agreed, at Part G paragraph 8 The partIes agree that they wIll request that FelIcIty Bnggs, Vice Chair of the Gnevance Settlement Board wIll be seIzed wIth resolvIng any dIsputes that anse from the ImplementatIOn of thIS agreement. It IS thIS agreement that provIdes me wIth the jUnSdIctIOn to resolve the outstandIng 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 fillIng those posItIOns as they become avaIlable throughout vanous phases of the restructunng. GIven the complexIty and SIze of the task of restructunng and decommIssIOmng of InstItutIOns, It IS not surpnSIng that a number of gnevances and dIsputes arose ThIS IS another of the dIsputes that have ansen under the MERC Memorandum of Settlement. 3 When I was ImtIally InvIted to hear theses transItIOn dIsputes, the partIes agreed that process to be followed for the determInatIOn of these matters would be vIrtually IdentIcal to that found In 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 determIne the gnevance by arbItratIOn. When determInIng the gnevance by arbItratIOn, the medIator/arbItrator may lImIt the nature and extent of the eVIdence and may Impose such condItIOns as he or she consIders appropnate The medIator/arbItrator shall gIve a SUCCInct decIsIOn wIthIn five (5) days after completIng proceedIngs, unless the partIes agree otherwIse The transItIOn commIttee has dealt wIth dozens of gnevances and complaInts 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, In accordance wIth my jUnSdIctIOn to so determIne that gnevances are to be presented by way of each party presentIng a statement of the facts wIth accompanYIng submIssIOns NotwIthstandIng that some gnevors mIght wIsh to attend and provIde oral eVIdence, to date, thIS process has been efficIent and has allowed the partIes to remaIn relatIvely current wIth dIsputes that anse from the contInuIng transItIOn process Not surpnsIngly In a few Instances there has been some confusIOn about the certaIn facts or sImply InSUfficIent detaIl has been provIded. On those occaSIOns I have dIrected the partIes to speak agaIn wIth theIr pnncIples to ascertaIn the facts or the ratIOnale behInd the partIcular outstandIng matter In each case thIS has been done to my satIsfactIOn. It IS essentIal In thIS process to aVOId accumulatIng a backlog of dIsputes The task of resolvIng these Issues In a tImely fashIOn was, from the outset, a formIdable one With ongOIng changes In Mimstenal boundanes and other orgamzatIOnal alteratIOns, the task has lately become larger not smaller It IS for these reasons that the process I have outlIned IS appropnate In these CIrcumstances 4 In a letter dated December 22, 2004 John Rabeau, Deputy Mimster of Mimstry of Commumty Safety and CorrectIOnal ServIces, wrote the folloWIng letter to Leah Casselman, PresIdent of the Umon In 1996 the government began a multI-year transformatIOn and modermzatIOn of the provInce's correctIOnal system I am wntIng today to advIse you that In early 2005 the Mimstry plans to announce that the Ontano CorrectIOnal InstItute and the BrockvIlle JaIl wIll contInue to operate for the foreseeable future Further constructIOn at the St. Lawrence Valley CorrectIOnal and Treatment Centre IS now complete and the facIlIty IS fully operatIOnal There wIll be no further constructIOn at St. Lawrence Valley CorrectIOnal and Treatment Centre In lIght of thIS announcement, I am requestIng that the MERC ImplementatIOn Sub- CommIttee meet to dISCUSS employee entItlements WIth regard to the MERC 3 agreement and the OPSEU CollectIve Agreement. As always, I would apprecIate that thIS InfOrmatIOn be kept In confidence untIl the affected staff at notIfied. Should you have any questIOns about the above, please do not hesItate to contact me At a MERC ImplementatIOn meetIng held on January 4 2005 the Employer dIsclosed the folloWIng to the Umon On December 23 2004 the Employer advIsed OPSEU that In early 2005 the Mimstry plans to announce that the Ontano CorrectIOnal InstItute and the BrockvIlle JaIl wIll contInue to operate for the foreseeable future The Employer also advIsed that the St. Lawrence Valley CorrectIOnal and Treatment Centre IS now fully operatIOnal and there wIll be no further expanSIOn. In lIght of the above, the Employer advIses that the management and operatIOn of the BrockvIlle JaIl and the St. Lawrence Valley CorrectIOnal and Treatment Centre locatIOns wIll be merged under one admInIstratIOn. I attended at the January 4 2005 MERC ImplementatIOn meetIng and the partIes posed certaIn questIOns regardIng employee entItlements that anse from the above announcements I provIded oral rulIng regardIng the outstandIng matters and I now set out those questIOns and my rulIng to wntIng. ThIS allowed the ImplementatIOn CommIttee an opportumty to meet later In the same week to negotIate a further MERC Memorandum of Agreement that encompasses matters floWIng from the Employer's announcements 5 Question # 1 What IS the home posItIOn of employees who (a) worked at the Rideau CorrectIOnal and Treatment Centre, and (b) accepted a lateral transfer to St. Lawrence Valley and (c) are temporanly assIgned to other facIlItIes at thIS tIme Ruling - Question # 1 The home posItIOn of the above employees IS St Lawrence Valley CorrectIOnal and Treatment Centre ThIS accords wIth the sIxth and seventh paragraph of Part 1 SectIOn D ofMERC 3 whIch states 6 When an employee In a decommIssIOmng InstItutIOn (Rideau CorrectIOnal and Treatment Centre/BrockvIlle JaIl) accepts a lateral transfer to the St. Lawrence Valley the employee wIll then be deemed to be a laterally transferred employee and wIll be remaIn (SIC) at theIr current locatIOn untIl theIr respectIve InstItutIOn no longer houses any Inmates or another date agreed to by the Employer and the Employee Upon mutual agreement employees may be temporanly assIgned elsewhere untIl theIr placement occurs (reference Part 5 paragraph 12) 7 A laterally transferred employee wIll be governed by the provIsIOns of the CollectIve Agreement whIch are applIcable to theIr new posItIOn. Question #2 What IS the home posItIOn of employees who (a) worked at the Rideau CorrectIOnal and Treatment Centre and (b) were surplussed at the RIdeau CorrectIOnal and Treatment Centre and (c) were assIgned to a posItIOn at St. Lawrence Valley and (d) are temporanly assIgned to other facIlItIes at thIS tIme Answer Question # 2 AgaIn, the answer IS that the home posItIOn for these employees IS St. Lawrence Valley CorrectIOnal and Treatment Centre In early 2004 employees who elected to make use of theIr ArtIcle 20 nghts receIved a letter sImIlar If not IdentIcal to the folloWIng: 6 In accordance wIth ArtIcle 20 of the OPSEU CollectIve Agreement you have chosen to exerCIse your redeployment entItlements As a result, the folloWIng posItIOn WIthIn 40 kIlometers of your permanent worksIte has been IdentIfied PosItIOn Title General Duty Officer ClassIficatIOn CorrectIOnal Officer 2 Work LocatIOn St. Lawrence Valley CorrectIOnal & Treatment Centre Supenntendent Ms Marg Welch You wIll be notIfied at a later date as to the effectIve date of thIS assIgnment. As you have been assIgned to thIS posItIOn, you are not elIgIble to exerCIse any other nghts under ArtIcle 20 of the CollectIve Agreement. Upon receIpt of thIS letter please acknowledge and return a copy of thIS letter by fax to the Employee TransItIOn Umt. 2005