York University Labour Disputes Resolution Act, 2018 Flynn, Hon. Kevin Daniel Minister of Labour — Bill 70 (41st Parliament, 3rd Session)

Bill 70, 41-3

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Bill 70, York University Labour Disputes Resolution Act, 2018

Flynn, Hon. Kevin Daniel Minister of Labour

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[41] Bill 70 Original (PDF)

EXPLANATORY

NOTE

The

Bill addresses the labour disputes between York University and the Canadian

Union of Public Employees, Local 3903. It requires the termination of any

strike or lock-out and provides a mechanism for achieving new collective

agreements.

Bill 70 2018

Act to resolve labour disputes between York University and Canadian Union of

Public Employees, Local 3903

Preamble

York

University and the Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 3903 were parties

to collective agreements that have expired.

The

parties have engaged in collective bargaining for approximately seven months

for new collective agreements, including conciliation and mediation with the

assistance of Ministry of Labour staff, but have failed to resolve their

disputes. A vote of the members of the bargaining units represented by the

Union in respect of the University's last offer was conducted. That offer was

rejected by all of the bargaining units.

Approximately

six weeks after the strike began, the Minister of Labour took the extraordinary

step of appointing an Industrial Inquiry Commission to inquire into the dispute

to help facilitate a resolution and to provide a report.

Negotiations

have reached an impasse and the parties are clearly deadlocked.

The

strike has been ongoing for nine weeks. The impacts of the labour disruption on

students are significant and numerous. Approximately 39,500 students, or

76 per cent of York's student population, have had one or more courses

adversely impacted by the strike. Alternate course completion options are not

available or feasible for many of these students and full access to their

courses is necessary for successful completion of their academic year.

Students in programs subject to external regulatory, accreditation or licensing

standards, such as Engineering, Law, Nursing and Teaching, are particularly at

risk. Students in programs subject to accreditation may not have any

alternate course completion options available to them. Nursing clinical

placements and non-graduating year teaching placements, which are mandatory

components of the programs, have been suspended. This jeopardizes the completion

of the academic year for students in those programs. In the case of

nursing students, it also jeopardizes their eligibility to write licensure

exams. The acceptances to higher degree or professional school for

students who are able to graduate based on alternate degree completion options

offered by the university may be at risk due to unfulfilled requirements.

For the approximately18,700 students currently enrolled in summer term courses,

delay or cancellation of one or more summer terms would jeopardize their

ability to obtain critical academic prerequisites for advanced areas of study

and completion of their final degree requirements.

Post-secondary

education serves a critical public function. A lengthy extension or loss of an

academic year has significant personal, educational, social and financial

implications for students and their families as well as serious organizational

and economic impacts on employers, the University and the broader public. These

negative consequences may be long term in nature and the repercussions could

extend beyond the parties, the students and their families. The continuation of

these disputes and the resulting disruption in education and its corresponding

effects give rise to serious public interest concerns. The interests of

students, families and the broader community require that these disputes be

resolved.

Having

regard to these serious circumstances, the considerable, though unfortunately

unsuccessful, efforts that have been made to help the parties reach agreement

and the clear deadlock in negotiations, the public interest requires an

exceptional and temporary solution to address the matters in dispute so that

new collective agreements may be concluded through a fair process of

mediation-arbitration, affected staff and students can return to class and the

normal post-secondary operation of the University can resume.

Therefore,

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of

the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Interpretation and

Application

Definitions

(1) In

this Act,

"bargaining

agent" means the Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 3903; ("agent

négociateur")

"employees"

means the employees of the employer who are represented by the bargaining

agent; ("employés")

"employer"

means York University; ("employeur")

"listed

bargaining unit" means any of the following:

1. The

bargaining unit referred to as Unit 1 in the collective agreement between the

employer and the bargaining agent effective from March 31, 2015 to August 31,

2017 as described in

Article 3 of that agreement which unit is composed of all

part-time employees registered at York University as full-time graduate

students and employed in teaching, demonstrating, tutoring or marking.

2. The

bargaining unit referred to as Unit 2 in the collective agreement between the

employer and the bargaining agent effective from March 31, 2015 to August 31,

2017 as described in

Article 3 of that agreement which unit is composed of a ll

employees employed in teaching, demonstrating, tutoring or marking, save and

except,

i. all

persons who are employed in the Faculty of Law, the Schulich School of

Business, the Department of Administrative Studies in the Faculty of Liberal

Arts and Professional Studies, the Centre for Continuing Education or in

courses intended primarily for students who are not registered in a degree

credit program,

ii. all

full-time graduate students registered at York University,

iii. all

persons holding part-time appointments at or above the rank of lecturer,

iv. persons

whose salaries are paid other than from operating funds,

v. persons

holding full-time academic appointments at the University,

vi. persons

employed in a confidential labour relations capacity,

vii. persons

engaged in graduate level teaching in the Faculty of Environmental Studies, and

viii. all

retirees from the full-time faculty of York University whose terms and

conditions of employment are governed by the terms of the YUFA collective

agreement.

3. The

bargaining unit referred to as Unit 3 in the collective agreement between the

employer and the bargaining agent effective from March 31, 2015 to August 31,

2017 as described in

Article 3 of that agreement which unit is composed of all

graduate students registered as full-time at York University who are receiving

financial assistance from or through the University and in connection with such

assistance are employed in administrative, clerical and research work, save and

except research assistants, supervisors, persons above the rank of supervisor,

and persons for whom a trade union held bargaining rights at the date of

application; ("unité de négocation désignée")

"Minister"

means the Minister of Labour; ("ministre")

"new

collective agreement", when used with respect to a listed bargaining unit,

means a collective agreement that,

(

a) applies

to the employees in that unit, and

(

b) is

executed after the day this Act receives Royal Assent or comes into force under

subsection 19 (5); ("nouvelle convention collective")

"parties",

when used in relation to a dispute, a mediation-arbitration proceeding dealing

with the dispute or a new collective agreement, means the employer and the

bargaining agent. ("parties")

Unit

(2) For

the bargaining unit referred to as Unit 3 and described in paragraph 3 of the

definition of "listed bargaining unit" in subsection (1),

(

a) for

greater certainty, and as set out in the collective agreement between the

employer and the bargaining agent effective from March 31, 2015 to August 31,

2017, graduate students registered as full-time at York University who receive

financial assistance from or through York University for research or academic

activities which are predominantly for the purposes of advancing the students'

progress towards fulfilment of their program and degree requirements are not in

that bargaining unit; and

(

b) the

reference to "date of application" in paragraph 3 of the definition of "listed

bargaining unit" in subsection (1) has the same meaning as in

Article 3 of the collective

agreement between the employer and the bargaining agent effective from March

31, 2015 to August 31, 2017 in respect of that unit.

Interpretation

(3) Expressions

used in this Act have the same meaning as in the Labour

Relations Act, 1995 , unless the context requires otherwise.

Application

of Act

(1) This

Act applies to the employer, the bargaining agent and the employees in a listed

bargaining unit if the employer and the bargaining agent have not executed a

collective agreement after August 31, 2017 and before the day this Act receives

Royal Assent with respect to that unit.

Application

of Labour Relations Act, 1995

(2) Except

as modified by this Act, the Labour Relations Act, 1995

applies to the employer, the bargaining agent and the employees.

Conflict

(3) In

the event of a conflict between this Act and the Labour

Relations Act, 1995 , this Act prevails.

Strikes

and Lock-outs

Duties

of employer and bargaining agent

Operation

of undertakings

(1) As

soon as this Act receives Royal Assent, the employer shall use all reasonable

efforts to operate and continue to operate its undertakings, including any

operations interrupted during any lock-out or strike that is in effect

immediately before this Act receives Royal Assent.

Termination

of lock-out

(2) As

soon as this Act receives Royal Assent, the employer shall terminate any

lock-out of employees that is in effect immediately before this Act receives

Royal Assent.

Termination

of strike

(3) As

soon as this Act receives Royal Assent, the bargaining agent shall terminate

any strike by employees that is in effect immediately before this Act receives

Royal Assent.

Same

(4) As

soon as this Act receives Royal Assent, each employee shall terminate any

strike that is in effect before this Act receives Royal Assent and shall,

without delay, resume the performance of the duties of his or her employment or

shall continue performing them, as the case may be.

Exception

(5) Subsection

(4) does not preclude an employee from not reporting to work and performing his

or her duties for reasons of health or by mutual consent of the employee and

the employer.

Prohibition

re strike

(1) Subject

section 6, no employee shall strike and no person or trade union shall call

or authorize or threaten to call or authorize a strike by any employees.

Same

(2) Subject

section 6, no officer, official or agent of a trade union shall counsel,

procure, support or encourage a strike by any employees.

Prohibition

re lock-out

(1) Subject

section 6, the employer shall not lock out or threaten to lock out any

employees.

Same

(2) Subject

section 6, no officer, official or agent of the employer shall counsel,

procure, support or encourage a lock-out of any employees.

Strike

or lock-out after new collective agreement

After

a new collective agreement with respect to a listed bargaining unit is executed

by the parties or comes into force under subsection 19 (5), the Labour Relations Act, 1995 governs the right of the

employees in that unit to strike and the right of the employer to lock out those

employees.

Offence

(1) A

person, including the employer, or a trade union who contravenes or fails to

comply with

section 3, 4 or 5 is guilty of an offence and on convi

Document details

Collection	Ontario — Bills
Citation	Bill 70, 41-3
Type	bill
Volume / chapter	p41 s3 bill 70 html
Language	en
Format	html
Source	PROVINCIAL
Identifier	227bbb72616fd04f997dd4b7443d395600fc11bc

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