HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-1900.Conty.19-04-25 DecisionCrown Employees
Grievance Settlement
Board
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180 Dundas St. West
Toronto, Ontario M5G 1Z8
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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# 2014-1900
UNION# 2014-0368-0114
IN THE MATTER OF AN ARBITRATION
Under
THE CROWN EMPLOYEES COLLECTIVE BARGAINING ACT
Before
THE GRIEVANCE SETTLEMENT BOARD
BETWEEN
Ontario Public Service Employees Union
(Conty) Union
- and -
The Crown in Right of Ontario
(Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services) 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 Community Safety and
Correctional Services
Senior Employee Transition Advisor
HEARINGS January 18, 2019 and April 18, 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 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] Melissa Conty filed a grievance on May 20, 2014 claiming that, for her Continuous
Service Date (“CSD”) purposes, she had not been credited with 40 hour weeks
during a period when she had been off work due to illness. The grievor had been a
fixed term Correctional Officer at the Central East Correctional Centre.
[8] Based on the facts and the parties’ submissions, it appears that a thorough review
of the grievor’s hours was conducted and the grievor’s CSD was set to November 3,
2008. However, that was later changed to November 27, 2008, and there was a
suggestion that the CSD should be December 15, 2008.
-3-
[9] Having reviewed all the documentation relating to the grievor’s hours of work, for the
reasons to follow, I direct that the Employer adjust the grievor’s CSD to November
3, 2008.
[10] The grievor was off work sick from December 3, 2013 to March 31, 2014.
[11] The calculation of hours when a fixed term employee is on sick leave is to be done
as the Board outlined in its decision in OPSEU (Union) v. Ministry of Public Safety
and Security, GSB#2095/02, July 17, 2003 (Briggs), at p. 3:
For the purposes of calculating straight-time hours for unclassified employees
under Appendix 24 for this agreement, the parties have agreed that authorized
leaves granted to unclassified employees during their unclassified employment will
be treated as follows:
…
(B) Unpaid sick leave
(i) scheduled shifts: Credit number of hours in the scheduled shifts missed due to
illness
(ii) other periods: utilize “Leave Formula”: Calculate employee’s average weekly
hours from the last day the employee worked before going on the leave going back
13 weeks. Credit weekly average over the 13 weeks for each week of leave.
[12] Since the grievor was off work for an extended period of time in 2013-2014, her
hours must be calculated in accordance with (B)(ii) above by looking at the 13
week period before she commenced her sick leave. Having reviewed the
documents regarding the grievor’s hours in the 13 weeks prior to her sick leave, it
is clear that she did not have an average of 40 hours per week. As such, those
weeks cannot be counted as 40 hour weeks.
[13] For the reasons outlined above, this grievance is upheld in part. The Employer is
directed to amend the grievor’s CSD to November 3, 2008.
Dated at Toronto, Ontario this 25th day of April, 2019.
“Gail Misra”
______________________
Gail Misra, Arbitrator