Labour Relations Board - British Columbia

Chapter Nine

Arbitration Procedures

Grievance Arbitration

Grievance arbitration is a process for settling disputes between the union and employer during the time a collective agreement is in effect. Usually a grievance arises out of the discipline or discharge of an employee by the employer or from a disagreement over interpretation of some part of the collective agreement. The grievance arbitration process involves attempts to resolve the difference between union and employer representatives. If that fails, the parties appoint a neutral third party, an arbitrator, to make a binding ruling.

If a collective agreement does not provide for some method of resolving mid-contract disputes, the Code contains a provision for arbitration that is deemed to be included in the agreement. Also, every collective agreement must contain a provision governing dismissal or discipline of an employee covered by the agreement and which requires the employer to have just and reasonable cause for dismissing or disciplining an employee. Again, if the collective agreement does not contain such a clause, the Code provision is deemed to be included.

Do the parties have to accept a grievance arbitration decision?

Yes. The decision of an arbitrator or arbitration board is final and conclusive. Arbitration decisions can be filed in the Supreme Court and are enforceable as court orders. Appeals of arbitration decisions can be made to the Board on the grounds that one of the parties did not get a fair hearing, or that the decision is inconsistent with the principles of the Code. Appeals can also be made through the courts on questions of general law.

Collective Agreement Arbitration Bureau

The Code provides for the Collective Agreement Arbitration Bureau to be established to administer arbitration provisions in the Code. The bureau operates as part of the Labour Relations Board and is made up of Board employees. One of the functions of the bureau is to appoint settlement officers upon the request of either party to a collective agreement. When the steps of a grievance process prior to arbitration have been completed, a Board settlement officer meets with the parties to work toward settlement of the grievance.

Another function of this bureau is to make appointments of arbitrators when the parties are unable or unwilling to agree on someone themselves. In these circumstances, one of the parties applies to the director of the bureau who appoints an arbitrator with full authority to hear and decide the outcome of the grievance.

Expedited arbitration

The Collective Agreement Arbitration Bureau also administers the expedited arbitration provisions of the Code. The purpose of these provisions is to ensure that matters of urgency to one of the parties will be dealt with and decided quickly.

After the parties have gone through their grievance procedures, and before a grievance is sent to conventional arbitration, either party can apply to the director of the bureau with a request for resolution of the grievance by expedited arbitration. The director then appoints an arbitrator who has tight time limits for hearing and deciding on the grievance. If both parties agree, there is also the possibility of including a Board settlement officer in trying to settle the grievance during the expedited process.

The parties can jointly ask the director of the bureau to appoint a mediator-arbitrator to work on an expedited basis. The mediator-arbitrator attempts to mediate a settlement of the grievance between the parties. If that fails, the mediator-arbitrator will determine the grievance by expedited arbitration.

Guide to the Labour Relations Code Province of British Columbia

Guide to the Labour Relations Code
Province of British Columbia