REPORT ON THE ADMINISTRATION
OF THE YUKON PUBLIC SERVICE
LABOUR RELATIONS ACT
FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING
MARCH 31, 2006

INTRODUCTION

Under an agreement with the Yukon government, the federal Public Service Labour Relations Board administers the collective bargaining and grievance adjudication systems for the Yukon public service. When performing these functions, that Board acts as the Yukon Public Service Labour Relations Board (the Board).

CHANGES IN 2005-06

Pursuant to the Act to Amend the Education Staff Relations Act and the Public Service Staff Relations Act, S.Y. 2004, c. 8, (the amending Act), which came into force on April 1, 2005, the Public Service Staff Relations Act became the Public Service Labour Relations Act.  

Under the amending Act, the Yukon Public Service Staff Relations Board (the former Board) was repealed and the new Yukon Public Service Labour Relations Board was established. The amending Act provided that the Board consists of the persons from time to time holding office as full-time members of the Public Service Labour Relations Board under the federal act (the Public Service Labour Relations Act, enacted by s. 2 of the Public Service Modernization Act, S.C. 2003, c. 22).

Pursuant to subsection 70(2) of the amending Act, members of the former Board were continued as members of the Board. In 2005-06, Yvon Tarte was appointed as Chair of the Board, and Léo-Paul Guindon, Dan Quigley and Jean-Pierre Tessier continued as members. J.W. Potter's term as Vice-Chair expired. Sylvie Matteau and Ian R. Mackenzie became Vice-Chairs of the Board along with Georges Nadeau. Dan Butler and Barry Done became members in the fall of 2005. John B. Hall, Francine Chad Smith and Ruth Elizabeth Bilson were re-appointed as adjudicators.

Pursuant to subsections 70(2) and (4) of the amending Act, the Board is to be considered as a continuation of the former Board and any proceeding that the former Board was seized of before the day on which the amending Act came into force was transferred to the Board. The amending Act came into force on April 1, 2005.

PROCEEDINGS IN 2005-06

In 2005-06, there were 36 proceedings under the Yukon Public Service Labour Relations Act (the Act): 18 were referrals to adjudication of grievances related to interpretations of collective agreements and disciplinary actions and 18 were notices of identification pertaining to positions considered by the employer to be managerial or confidential (exclusion proposals).

No applications were received for the designation of employees essential for the safety or security of the public, and no applications were made for the determination of membership in bargaining units.

Grievance adjudication

Adjudication refers to any determination made by adjudicators appointed by the Board pursuant to the Act. It includes the determination of grievances arising from the application or interpretation of collective agreements or arbitral awards, or from major disciplinary action and termination. 

The Board dealt with 18 grievance cases during the period under review-9 of which were new and 9 of which were carried over from the previous fiscal year. A total of 3 cases were completed in 2005-06.

Of the 18 cases, 7 dealt with interpretations of collective agreements. Of those, 1 case was settled by the parties prior to the hearing and 6 cases are to be scheduled for hearing in 2006-07.

The other 11 cases dealt with disciplinary matters, 4 of which involved terminations. Of these 4 cases, 1 was decided without an oral hearing and 1 was settled by the parties prior to the hearing. The other 2 termination cases are to be scheduled for hearing in 2006-07. The remaining 7 cases dealing with other types of disciplinary matters are to be scheduled for hearing in 2006-07.

Managerial or confidential positions

A person employed in a managerial or confidential position is one who, due to the nature of the duties being performed, meets the criteria established by the Public Service Labour Relations Act for exclusion from a bargaining unit. 

In 2005-06, 17 positions were identified by the employer as being managerial or confidential and 1 case was carried over from previous years. The bargaining agent objected to the identification of all 18 positions. By the end of 2005-06, 15 cases had been withdrawn by the bargaining agent, 1 had been withdrawn by the employer, and 2 were on hold pending the examiner's report.

Safety or security designations / Statement of essential services

Section 42 of the Act requires the employer to furnish a statement of the employees in a bargaining unit whose duties at any particular time are necessary to the safety or security of the public. In 2005-06, the Yukon Public Service Commission filed no such applications.

Determination of membership in bargaining units

One case had been filed prior to 2005-06 as a Determination of Membership in Bargaining Units under section 26, in error, and carried over into the period under review. This case was closed by the Board on June 17, 2005. No applications were received in 2005-06.