1. All applications
received by the Board will initially be entered in the Registry. The Board's filing hours are 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Monday to Friday, excluding statutory holidays. Applications,
submissions or other documents received by the Board after 4:00 p.m. will be treated as if
received at 8:00 a.m. the next business day, unless special arrangements have been made in
advance. The Registrar will determine whether
an application should be processed on an expedited basis (e.g., where a specific time
frame is directed by the Labour Relations Code
or the Rules or the matter is urgent) or should be sent out for submissions. Where submissions are to be requested, the file
will be assigned to the appropriate Case Administrator by geographic area.
The Labour Relations Board accepts applications (filled in
application form attached to an e-mail) or submissions via e-mail.
Place the appropriate word "Application" or "Submission" in the
subject line of the e-mail, along with any relevant case numbers (if
known for submissions) so it can easily be identified. Once the
e-mail is received at the Labour Relations Board an auto-reply will
automatically be sent back to the user acknowledging receipt of the
correspondence. If you don't receive the auto-reply
acknowledgement within a few minutes you must follow up with a phone
call to the Labour Relations Board Receptionist at 604 660-1300.
Explain the situation and you will be connected with the Registry Mail Clerk
for follow up. Correspondence will be
accepted at registrar@lrb.bc.ca.
2. The Case Administrator
will retain primary responsibility for co-ordination of the submission process. In addition to the requirements of specific
applications contained in either the Code or the Rules, all applications and replies shall
comply with Rules 2(2) and 4(2) in particular. This
means that all parties shall:
(a) state whether a hearing
before the board is requested;
(b) if a hearing is requested,
provide reasons for the request together with an estimate of the time required and the
proposed location of the hearing; and
(c) contain a statement as to
the urgency of the matter and the reasons for any stated urgency.
3. Those who are unable
to meet a deadline for filing an application may call the Board's Registrar, Deputy
Registrar or Case Administrators ahead of time
for filing. Extension requests for the filing
of a Section 99 or 141 application should be directed to the Registrar; those concerning
submissions should be directed to the appropriate Case Administrator. Where possible, consent of the other parties
should be obtained, although the practice of the Board is to grant short extensions (up to
three working days for Section 99 or 141 applications, and up to five working days for
submissions) without requiring that such consent be obtained. Longer extensions may be granted where agreed to by the parties, if
acceptable to the Board (additional extensions beyond three working days are rarely
granted for Section 141 applications). If a
longer extension is required and agreement of the other parties cannot be obtained, the
party requesting an extension should apply to the Registrar in writing, setting out the
reasons an extension is required.
4. Parties should be
aware that a request for an extension does not operate as a stay; if the Board has not yet
made a determination on the request for an extension, the original deadline continues to
apply.
5. A party who obtains an
extension should inform the other parties immediately -- in the case of a Section 99 or
141 application, by letter to the Board copied to the other parties. The party should also confirm the extension in its
application or submissions.
6. After the application
has been received and the time for filing any replies with the Board has passed, the file
will be sent to the Adjudication Division for assignment to a Panel, usually headed by a
Vice-Chair.
7. Either before or after
a hearing has been scheduled, the Vice-Chair will consider an appropriate "case
management" strategy for the file. This
will typically involve a conference with the parties (either in person or by telephone)
prior to the hearing. Board Rule 17A
enumerates some of the options available, including:
(a)
directing the pre-hearing disclosure of documents by a party or by
any other person who may be called as a witness
in the proceeding;
(b) directing a party to provide
further facts or details of the position it is taking in the proceeding;
(c) developing an agreed
statement of facts, obtaining admissions which might facilitate the hearing, or preparing
a sworn statement of the evidence which will be elicited from a witness in the proceeding;
(d) directing that an
investigation be conducted and a report be prepared respecting any aspect of the
proceeding;
(e) directing that a written
submission be filed respecting a report prepared in the proceeding, or respecting any
aspect of the proceeding;
(f) attempting to simplify
the matters in dispute between the parties, including achieving the resolution of some or
all of those matters;
(g) directing the parties to
attend a settlement conference;
(h) discussing the conduct of
the hearing, including the order in which the parties will proceed, the number and
identity of witnesses, and the estimated length of time required; and
(i) directing any
other pre-hearing step or initiative which is designed to aid in the disposition of the
proceeding in accordance with Rule 1(2).
Appropriate
time lines for any case management steps (e.g., exchange of documents) should be
established and monitored by the Vice-Chair. In
complex cases, more than one meeting or telephone conference may be required. A brief conference shortly before the hearing may
serve to avoid unnecessary adjournments.
8.
An investigatory report from an Industrial Relations Officer will only be requested where
the Vice-Chair determines that it is necessary or will assist the adjudication process. The request will be made in writing and it will
often be appropriate for the Vice-Chair to give specific direction as to the subject
matter(s) of a report. All reports will be
requested through the Registry and will be provided to the parties (except for
investigations regarding membership evidence or other matters which are required to be
kept confidential). By agreement, a report
may be considered evidence in the proceedings in order to expedite the process, and
parties may be requested to file submissions in respect of the Officer's report.
9. Settlement initiatives
will be undertaken where an assessment is made that some or all of the differences between
the parties can be resolved. Board Rule 17B
stipulates conditions for settlement conferences, including the provision that all parties
to a proceeding shall be notified of the time, date and place for a settlement conference
and a representative of a party with authority to settle may be required to be present. The Vice-Chair or Panel assigned to the file may
elect to involve the assistance of:
(a) a Special Investigating
Officer (in the normal course);
(b) an Industrial Relations
Officer;
(c) a Mediator;
(d) one or more Members;
(e) another Vice-Chair;
or any combination of the above.
Settlement discussions are "without prejudice" to the formal
adjudication of applications. Accordingly, without
specific agreement of the parties, a member of the Panel
assigned to hear the application will not be involved in
settlement efforts. |
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