On July 15th, Arbitrator Sheehan held that a police association did not have a right of access to a harassment investigation report.
Arbitrator Sheehan held that the employer denied access for “reasonable cause” – the need to encourage witness candour – and therefore acted consistently with its collective agreement. He also dealt with the broader premise for the association’s case and, in doing so, questioned the a finding in which the OLRB held that a union’s representational role justified a similar right of access He said:
I have some difficulty with extrapolating the reasoning in those cases, as support for a much broader proposition that a union will necessarily be entitled to otherwise private/confidential information associated with a particular operational decision of an employer; simply on the basis that the information in question will be of assistance to the union to fulfill its duty of fair representation obligations. Or more particularly, that the union is entitled to such information on the basis it would be helpful to the union in assessing whether it would be appropriate, in the circumstances, to file a grievance.
There are numerous scenarios where the employer has information in its possession that may be quite helpful to the union, in terms of assessing whether there has been a violation of the collective agreement; and therefore, a basis to file a grievance. For example, in a job promotion dispute, the employer typically has information which may involve the confidential evaluations or interview/test results of the candidates. Such information would, obviously, be useful for the union to review in terms of whether in fact a grievance should be filed on behalf of a senior employee not awarded the position. In that sense, the union has an “interest” in the disclosure of the information. The duty of fair representation obligations resting on the union, however, does not transform that “interest” in obtaining the information into a “right” of disclosure, which would obligate the employer to comply with a request to disclose; solely to assist the union, in their assessment of whether there is a basis to file a grievance.
The disclosure of employer documentation arising out of a disciplinary investigation may likewise be of particular assistance to the union in terms of evaluating whether in fact there is a basis to assert a violation of the collective agreement. Again, as has been previously discussed, if the request for the information should arise in the context of the adjudication of a grievance challenging the issued discipline, there would be a presumptive right (subject to a valid claim of privilege) for the union to obtain production of such arguably relevant documentation. It is, however, an entirely different proposition to suggest, that the employer prior to the filing of a grievance, is obligated to forward that information to the union; on the basis the information may be of assistance to the union, in its assessment of whether there is a basis for filing a grievance.
For similar reasoning see Arbitrator’s Lanyon’s decision in Mount Arrowsmith Teachers’ Association.
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