What role does a certified bargaining agent have in the enforcement of collective agreements?

Canada (Federal), Canada

The following excerpt is from Allen v. Alberta, 2003 SCC 13 (CanLII), [2003] 1 SCR 128:

13 The judgment of our Court in St. Anne Nackawic brought to an end a long period of jurisprudential development and uncertainty as to the respective roles of labour arbitrators and courts in the enforcement of collective agreements. It adopted a model of exclusive jurisdiction of arbitrators over disputes arising from collective agreements, rather than upholding the overlapping jurisdiction of common law courts over such conflicts. This model reflects the nature of the labour relations regime which has existed in Canada for a number of years. A certified bargaining agent holds exclusive bargaining rights in respect of a group of employees. It represents all the members of the unit and negotiates with the employer to arrive at a collective agreement that defines their employment conditions. This agreement binds the union, the employees and the employer. The union is held to a duty of fair representation of the employees it represents. (See Hémond v. Coopérative fédérée du Québec, 1989 CanLII 46 (SCC), [1989] 2 S.C.R. 962, at p. 975, per Gonthier J.; Noël v. Société d’énergie de la Baie James, [2001] 2 S.C.R. 207, 2001 SCC 39, at pp. 227-29.)

Other Questions


Does the doctrine of collective bargaining apply to both parties to a collective bargaining agreement? (MultiRegion, United States of America)
What is the test for alleging that a bargaining agent failed to meet their duty of fair representation in a bargaining agreement? (Canada (Federal), Canada)
Is a collective bargaining agreement enforceable in federal court? (MultiRegion, United States of America)
Does a court have authority to order the non-enforcement of discriminatory provisions in a collective bargaining agreement even in the absence of a signatory employer? (MultiRegion, United States of America)
When a husband breaches a life insurance agreement that expressly requires the husband to maintain the policy, does the wife have a right to enforce the agreement at the time the husband breached the agreement? ("New York", United States of America)
What is the test for determining whether a party to a collective bargaining agreement has equal bargaining strength? (MultiRegion, United States of America)
How has the collective bargaining agreement been interpreted by the courts? (MultiRegion, United States of America)
Can a state-law claim be resolved without interpreting the collective bargaining agreement? (MultiRegion, United States of America)
What is the state of the law in the context of a collective bargaining agent's grievance? (Canada (Federal), Canada)
What is the test for a plaintiff to bring an action under section 301 of the LMRA against an employer for breach of a collective bargaining agreement? (MultiRegion, United States of America)
X



Alexi white


"The most advanced legal research software ever built."

Trusted by top litigators from across North America.