TABLE TALK

AMBIGUITY: doubtful or uncertain meaning; ordinarily used in connection with collective agreement language which is open to more than one interpretation;

PATENT AMBIGUITY is one which is apparent on the face of the agreement, whereas a

LATENT AMBIGUITY is one that becomes apparent only after an examination of surrounding circumstances; extrinsic evidence is admissible to resolve an ambiguity

Bargaining is not the same as getting a bargain in a store: the settlement (contract) may be a very bad one if the group or its representatives are not strong enough to be able to negotiate successfully - or if the union is forbidden by law from getting help from other unions.

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING, in labour relations, is negotiations between employers and employees (who are usually represented by a labour union) about terms and conditions of employment.

The bargaining process is concerned with wages, working hours, fringe benefits, job security, safety, and other matters relating to working conditions.

"COLLECTIVE" means that the workers negotiate as a group, not as individuals anymore. In this sense, everyone in the group is equal. Where sections of the group (the bargaining unit) get a better deal than others, it is still as groups rather than as individuals.

A "COLLECTIVE LABOUR AGREEMENT" is a written contract of employment covering a group of employees who are represented by a trade union. This agreement contains provisions governing the terms and conditions of employment. It also contains the rights, privileges and duties of the employer, the trade union and the employees.

A "CONTRACT" is a legal and binding agreement between a number of parties, stating their legal rights, entitlements and their duties and obligations to each other.

ESTOPPEL: principle of law preventing a party from insisting on its strict legal rights where by its words or conduct it has represented that it would not do so and another party has changed its position to its disadvantage or detriment in reliance upon that representation;

for example, an employer, who has paid benefits without insisting on a waiting period stipulated in the collective agreement, may be estopped from subsequently altering such a practice before renegotiating the agreement;

Estoppel may be based not only on actual statements made by a party, but also on past practice, or a prior course of conduct, or even the failure of a party to grieve or object to a departure from the parties' strict legal rights or obligations.

Where estoppel involves rights under a collective agreement, the requirement of DETRIMENTAL RELIANCE may be satisfied if the party asserting the estoppel establishes that, in reliance on the other party's representations, it gave up the opportunity to negotiate a change in the collective agreement.

Although estoppel can be brought to an end by notice that a party intends to revert to its strict legal rights, arbitrators have generally held that the party adversely affected must first be given the opportunity to negotiate the issue in dispute.

EXTRINSIC EVIDENCE: evidence external to a collective agreement such as past practice or negotiating history; admissible to support an argument based on estoppel or to assist in the interpretation of a collective agreement where the language thereof is ambiguous.

"INDIVIDUAL BARGAINING" occurs when a person can negotiate on the basis that they can get a better deal than others on account of superior strength, speed or skill - or that they are worth more than anyone else is getting. Individual bargaining is based on inequality with others.

The "PARTIES" to the contract are the union and the employer. The union is all the members as a body, not the individual employees, nor the bargaining committee.

The UNION is recognized as the sole and exclusive bargaining agent for all employees governed by the collective agreement and the employer is prohibited from negotiating individually with employees.

CONCILIATION is a process which is required under law wherein an independent Officer is appointed by the government who attempts to resolve contract disputes prior to legal strike action or lockouts.

MEDIATION is a non-binding and voluntary meeting between the Parties working towards a negotiated settlement before a legal strike or lockout deadline

THE "NO BOARD REPORT" - if the employer and the union cannot reach agreement in conciliation, the conciliation officer informs the Minister of Labour.

The Minister may then appoint a conciliation board. This seldom happens, however. Rather, the Minister will issue a notice informing the union and the employer that he does not consider it advisable to appoint a conciliation board. This notice is commonly known as the "no board".

FACT-FINDING involves the submission of a dispute to a fact-finder who meets with the parties, collects and analyses all relevant statistics and contentions and subsequently issues a report.

The report is not binding on the parties but it does inform the public about the nature of the dispute and what may be a reasonable solution to it.

ARBITRATION is a quasi-judicial process in which a disinterested third-party (an arbitrator or arbitration board) hears evidence presented by both the union and the employer on issues in dispute, and hands down a final and binding decision.

TYPES OF ARBITRATION:

RIGHTS- a mechanism to resolve disputes about the interpretation and application of a collective agreement during the term of that collective agreement

INTEREST - a mechanism to renew or establish a new collective agreement for parties without the right to strike/lock-out, i.e. hospital/nursing home workers

STRIKE - Includes a cessation of work; a refusal to work by employees in combination or in concert or in accordance with a common understanding or; a slowdown or; other concerted activity on the part of employees designed to restrict or limit output/ productivity.

LOCK-OUT - includes the closing of a place of employment; a suspension of work or a refusal by an employer to continue to employ a number of employees - with a view to compel or induce the employees , or to aid another employer to compel or induce that employer's employees, to refrain from exercising any rights or privileges under the OLRA or to agree to provisions respecting terms or conditions of employment or the rights, privileges or duties of the employer, an employer's organization, the trade union or the employees.

The ONTARIO LABOUR RELATIONS ACT (OLRA), 1995 governs both the process by which a trade union acquires bargaining rights and;

the procedures by which trade unions and employers engage in collective bargaining;

the Act applies primarily to workplaces in the private sector, but also applies to certain parts of the public sector (municipal workers, hospital employees, school boards, Ontario Hydro, etc.) with some modifications.

The EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS ACT establishes minimum thresholds for certain working conditions such as: hourly wages, overtime pay, rest periods, vacations, statutory holidays etc. While Parties are free to negotiate terms that provide greater rights or benefits than those defined by the Act, they cannot agree to any standard less than those prescribed.