Please find additional information about grievances below.
Details about grievances Grievances
What is a Grievance?
A question we often are asked is what is a grievance? In our collective agreement, a grievance is defined as: “any difference arising out of the interpretation, application, administration or alleged violation of the Agreement.” Essentially, we grieve that the University failed to abide by article(s) in the collective agreement. We do not submit grievances against individuals, though the grievance may be about a specific situation involving another individual. Many people think that filing a grievance is going to create conflict. By the time a grievance is filed, a conflict already exists. The grievance is the conflict resolution procedure. Do not think that you are creating a conflict by filing a grievance – you are attempting to resolve a conflict at that point.
Types of Grievances:
An individual grievance is when the issue is affecting one person, a group grievance is when it affects more than one person and more than one person is willing to file the grievance. The third type of grievance is a policy grievance. A policy grievance is filed when the issue may not directly affect a specific person, but the Union believes that there is a violation in interpretation of the collective agreement. This may include issues like the creation of teaching positions outside of our union which may impact the job security of our members.
Grievance Procedure:
When the union files a grievance, a meeting must be held between the union and management. The union will present the grievance and the grievor rarely talks during those meetings. The University may have questions for the grievor at which point the grievor can answer. The University will have to give a written response to the grievance following that meeting, either agreeing with the grievance or denying it. If the grievance is denied, the union will decide whether to send the grievance to arbitration or not.
Grievance Process – an explanation
We know many of you may be scared of bringing issues forward due to many different reasons. If you have a question or issue, please contact our Labour Relations Coordinator, Jeff Cornelissen (labourrelations@cupe3913.on.ca) for assistance. By contacting Jeff, you will simply explain what the issue is and have a conversation around the issue. Jeff will provide insight into different ways the issue can be resolved. This does not always mean a formal grievance.
There are many ways issues can be resolved. We may help guide you to the appropriate person to talk to in order to resolve the issue. The union may recommend that the issue be brought up with someone from Faculty and Staff Relations (FASR). The union can do that through requesting a meeting with FASR, or by bringing up the issue during a Labour-Management Committee meeting (LMC). A LMC is a meeting between union officers and University management representatives to discuss and try to settle any issues at the workplace. The LMC meets monthly.
If you agree to bring the issue up informally with FASR, whether that be at a LMC or a meeting just to discuss the issue, that essentially means we are bringing the issue to the University’s attention in the hopes that it will be addressed. Often bringing the issue up informally does require the specifics, sometimes we have brought the issue up without providing names at the request of the person. In your conversation with Jeff, we can discuss how the union will present the information so you are comfortable with it. The Union is able to settle the vast majority of issues at the informal stage. Every resolution will be specific to the situation.
Sometimes the informal process is not appropriate to the situation, or the informal process does not lead to an appropriate remedy. The next step would be to file a grievance. We will only file an individual or group grievance with the permission of the person or people involved. An individual grievance is when the issue is affecting one person, a group grievance is when it affects more than one person and more than one person is willing to file the grievance. The third type of grievance is a policy grievance. A policy grievance is filed when the issue may not directly affect a specific person, but the Union believes that there is a violation in interpretation of the collective agreement. This may include issues like the creation of teaching positions outside of our union which may impact the job security of our members.
When the union files a grievance, a meeting must be held between the union and management. The union will present the grievance and the grievor rarely talks during those meetings. The University may have questions for the grievor at which point the grievor can answer. The University will have to give a written response to the grievance following that meeting, either agreeing with the grievance or denying it. If the grievance is denied, the union will decide whether to send the grievance to arbitration or not.
Arbitration is a process where both the union and management present their cases to a neutral third party who is trained in the area of labour relations. That person then makes a written decision which is binding on both parties. From any point of filing the grievance to the start of arbitration the University and the Union may negotiate a settlement. Often, we are successful at negotiating good settlements with the University prior to arbitration. The majority of grievances are settled through negotiated settlements. Every settlement will be specific to the circumstance. Very few grievances make it to arbitration.
In conclusion, we encourage you to bring issues forward to us. We need to know what is happening in the workplace so that we may be able to do something about it. We will plan with you the best way to address the situation. We want to ensure we are representing you the best way possible, and that includes coming up with a plan you are comfortable with. Most issues can be resolved informally. If yours cannot, then we can discuss and agree upon the best way forward.
