Canada Industrial Relations Board

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Government Information
2008

Canada Industrial Relations Board

General Information

Background

The Canada Industrial Relations Board is an independent, representational, quasi‑judicial tribunal responsible for the interpretation and application of the Canada Labour Code, Part I (Industrial Relations) and certain provisions of Part II (Occupational Health and Safety).

It was established on January 1, 1999 with the coming into force of Bill C-19, an Act to amend the Canada Labour Code (Part I), R.S. 1998 C. 26, replacing the Canada Labour Relations Board. The amending Act also made significant changes to Part I of the Canada Labour Code in an effort to modernize it and improve the collective bargaining process for federally regulated industries. Before the 1999 amendments, Part I of the Code had remained virtually unchanged since 1972.

Responsibilities

The CIRB's mandate is to contribute to and promote effective industrial relations in any work, undertaking or business that falls within the authority of the Parliament of Canada. It interprets and applies the Code in a manner that supports and promotes free collective bargaining and the constructive settlement of disputes.

Under the Code, the Board has jurisdiction in regard to some 800,000 employees and their employers engaged in federal jurisdiction industries, which include interprovincial transportation (air, land and water), broadcasting, banking, longshoring and grain handling, to some Crown corporations, and to private-sector employers and employees in Nunavut, the Yukon, and the Northwest Territories.

In general, Part I of the Canada Labour Code charges the Board with a twofold responsibility: that of granting, modifying and terminating bargaining rights, and that of resolving, through mediation or adjudication, complaints of unfair labour practice concerning violations of the Code by trade unions or employers.

Under Part II of the Code, the Board must rule on complaints by employees alleging that they have been discriminated against or punished for exercising their rights in relation to safety.

On finding a violation of the Code, the Board is empowered to order reinstatement and compensation where appropriate. It is also empowered, upon application, to order employees to return to work in cases of illegal work stoppages and to attempt to resolve or adjudicate, where necessary, various other types of disputes that may arise under Part I of the Code.

Legislation

Canada Industrial Relations Board Regulations, 2001, SOR/2001-520
Canada Labour Code (Parts I and II)

Organization

The Board's adjudicatiave team, as provided for in the Code, is comprised of the Chairperson, two or more full-time Vice-Chairpersons(at present five full-time and two part-time Vice-Chairpersons), not more than six full-time Members of which not more than three represent employers and not more than three represent employees (at present six full-time) and any other part-time Members (representing, in equal numbers, employees and employers) necessary to discharge the responsibilities of the Board. All are appointed by order-in-council: the Chairperson and Vice-Chairpersons for five-year terms and Members for three-year terms.

The Chairperson is the chief executive officer of the Board. The provisions of the Code assign to the Chairperson supervision over, and direction of, the work of the Board including: the assignment and reassignment to panels of matters that the Board is seized of; the composition of panels and the assignment of Vice-Chairpersons to preside over panels; the determination of the date, time and place of hearings; the conduct of the Board's work; the management of the Board's internal affairs; and the duties of the staff of the Board. The Board's headquarters are located in the National Capital Region. Support to the Board is provided by the Executive Director, reporting directly to the Chairperson. The Executive Director is responsible for regional operations, case management, client and corporate services, financial services and human resources. The Legal Services Branch provides legal assistance as required by the Board and its units and the General Counsel also reports directly to the Chairperson of the Board.

The Board also has five regional offices in Dartmouth, Montréal, Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver, with a satellite office in Winnipeg. These offices are staffed by labour relations professionals and case management teams. Each regional office is headed by a regional director, who reports to the Executive Director in Ottawa.

Information Holdings

Institution-Specific Classes of Records

Acquisition and Termination of Bargaining Rights
Description: Case files concerning the acquisition by trade unions of the right to bargain collectively on behalf of employees in the federal jurisdiction, through certification as bargaining agent or by way of successor rights, and the termination of bargaining rights.
Document Types: Applications for certification; applications for declaration of single employer; applications for revocation of certification; applications for declaration of successor rights; applications for declaration of sale of business; applications for access to employer's premises for the purpose of soliciting union membership.
Access: Files are arranged by case number.
Record Number: CIR OPS 005

Change of Terms and Conditions of Employment
Description: Applications by employers under federal jurisdiction for permission to alter the rates of pay, or any other terms or conditions of employment, or any rights or privileges of employees who are the subject of an application by a trade union to represent the employees in collective bargaining.
Document Types: Applications to change terms and conditions of employment
Access: Files are arranged by case number.
Record Number: CIR OPS 035

Collective Bargaining and Collective Agreements
Description: Applications concerning the existence of disputed collective agreements or the identification of parties bound by a collective agreement; applications concerning the failure of an employer to comply with obligations under a collective agreement respecting any proposed technological change; applications for permission to give the employer notice to begin collective bargaining following a notice of technological change; references from the Minister of Labour directing the Board to inquire into disputes related to the settlement of first collective agreements, and to impose a first agreement on the parties if necessary; applications by a trade union or an employer with respect to the maintenance of activities required to protect the health and safety of the public in the event of a strike or lockout; referrals by the Minister of Labour concerning the application of or compliance with the maintenance of activities provisions; applications by individuals who, because of religious beliefs, object to joining a trade union or to paying regular union dues to a trade union (the Board may allow an exception for such individuals, directing the amount normally paid for regular union dues to a registered charity chosen by the employee and the union); applications by parties to a collective agreement to serve notice to bargain following the establishment of a portion of the public service as a Crown corporation and following certain determinations by the Board as to whether the agreement will remain in force, the expiration date if it does remain in force, whether the employees concerned constitute one or more units appropriate for collective bargaining, and which trade union shall be the bargaining agent for each unit.
Document Types: Applications fordetermination of the existence of a collective agreement; revision of terms of collective agreement; technological change; leave to serve notice to bargain concerning technological change; provision of first agreement; maintenance of activities to protect the health and safety of the public; religious objections; portion of the public service established as Crown corporation.
Access: Files are arranged by case number.
Record Number: CIR OPS 030

Complaints of Unfair Labour Practice
Description: Complaints by persons or organizations that an employer, a trade union or a person has violated or failed to comply with provisions of the Canada Labour Code, Part I (Industrial Relations).
Document Types: Complaints related to failure to bargain in good faith, interference with the bargaining rights of a bargaining agent and changing of conditions of employment without the consent of the bargaining agent during the prescribed bargaining period; complaints alleging offences by employers such as interference with the formation or administration of a union or the representation of employees by a trade union, or discrimination against employees for union membership, union activity or the exercise of their rights under the Code; complaints alleging violations by trade unions such as trying to force an employer to bargain collectively in respect of employees for whom the union is not the bargaining agent, bargaining with an employer in respect of employees with the knowledge that another organization is the actual bargaining agent, interference in the formation or administration of an employers' organization, unauthorized soliciting of employees during their working hours at their place of employment, requiring the termination of an employee for loss of union membership unless that loss of membership is the result of failure to pay the required union fees, the application of membership rules or disciplinary procedures in a discriminatory manner, and discriminating against a person in matters related to employment or union membership because a person has exercised certain rights or fulfilled specified obligations under the Code; complaints alleging failure of a trade union to represent fairly all employees in the bargaining unit, or failure to establish rules for the referral of members to employment and apply the rules fairly, and alleging failure of a trade union to provide certified financial statements of its affairs to the end of its last fiscal year to any of its members free of charge.
Access: Files are arranged by case number.
Record Number: CIR OPS 010

Review and Enforcement of Orders
Description: Applications to amend or rescind previous Board decisions or to reconsider previous decisions; requests to file Board orders in the federal court to give them the weight of an order of the court; or applications for the written consent of the Board to prosecute an offence under the Canada Labour Code.
Document Types: Application for review; filing of Board order in court; consent to prosecute.
Access: Files are arranged by case number.
Record Number: CIR OPS 025

Safety of Employees
Description: Complaints by employees alleging that their employer has imposed a penalty on them because they refused to work in accordance with their rights under Part II of the Canada Labour Code (refusal to work because of a dangerous situation).
Document Types: Complaint alleging an employer has taken action against an employee for having exercised its rights under Part II of the Canada Labour Code.
Access: Files are arranged by case number.
Record Number: CIR OPS 020

Unlawful Work Stoppage
Description: Applications by an employer (in the case of a strike) or by a trade union (in the case of a lockout) for a declaration that the work stoppage is unlawful.
Document Types: Applications concerning unlawful strikes; applications in cases of unlawful lockout.
Access: Files are arranged by case number.
Record Number: CIR OPS 015

Standard Classes of Records

Please see the Introduction to this publication for the descriptions of Standard Classes of Records.

Access to Information and Privacy Requests

Accounts and Accounting

Acts and Legislation

Administration

Administration and Management Services

Audits

Automated Document, Records, Information Management Systems

Boards, Committees and Councils

Budgets

Buildings

Business Continuity Planning

Classification of Positions

Communications

Equipment and Supplies

Finance

Furniture and Furnishings

Hospitality

Human Resources

Information Technology Services

Office Appliances

Official Languages

Pensions and Insurance

Personnel

Procurement and Contracting

Recruitment and Staffing

Relocation

Salaries and Wages

Staff Relations

Training and Development

Travel

Institution-Specific Personal Information Banks

Religious Objections
Description: This bank contains applications by individuals who, because of religious beliefs, object to joining a trade union or to paying regular union dues to a trade union. The Board may order that a provision in a collective agreement requiring membership in a trade union or the payment of union dues as a condition of employment not be applied to such employees.
Class of Individuals: Individuals who work for companies under federal jurisdiction, as set out in the Canada Labour Code.
Purpose: Personal information is obtained solely for the purpose of determining whether an employee's objections to membership in a trade union are based on true religious convictions.
Consistent Uses: Religious objections may occasionally require a public hearing to determine complex issues, which could affect the Board's decision regarding the objections. Such a hearing may result in the publication of a written judgment containing the facts surrounding the application and the Board's reasons for granting or rejecting the application.
Retention and Disposal Standards: Case files are kept by the Board for three years and then destroyed.
RDA Number: 96/025
Related Record Number: CIR OPS 030
TBS Registration: 002331
Bank Number: CIR PPU 015

Termination of Bargaining Rights
Description: This bank contains case files concerning applications for revocation of certifications, which grant bargaining agents (unions) the right to represent employees in collective bargaining with employers under federal jurisdiction.
Class of Individuals: Individuals who work for companies under federal jurisdiction, as set out in the Canada Labour Code.
Purpose: Personal information is obtained solely for the purpose of determining whether an individual is a member of the bargaining unit and therefore entitled to express support for or against his or her bargaining agent.
Consistent Uses: Applications for revocation may occasionally require a public hearing in order to determine complex issues, which could affect the Board's decision and may result in the publication of a written judgment, which will contain the facts surrounding the application and the Board's reasons for granting or rejecting it.
Retention and Disposal Standards: Case files are kept by the Board for 27 years, then transferred to the National Archives of Canada. Cases withdrawn are destroyed after three years.
RDA Number: 96/025
Related Record Number: CIR OPS 005
TBS Registration: 000102
Bank Number: CIR PPU 010

Violations of the Canada Labour Code
Description: This bank contains case files concerning complaints by individuals that a section, or sections, of the Canada Labour Code, Parts I and II have been violated by their employer, their union, or another individual. Files may contain information on grievances, work records, or letters from unions or employers containing opinions or comments about individuals.
Class of Individuals: Individuals who work for companies under federal jurisdiction, as set out in the Canada Labour Code.
Purpose: Information about individuals is obtained solely for the purpose of bringing about a settlement to the dispute or, failing settlement, for the purpose of adjudication by the Board on the merits of the complaint.
Consistent Uses: Information contained in case files, along with testimony given at public hearings may be published in written judgments, which set out the Board's reasons for rejecting or upholding a complaint. Personal information is used solely for the purpose of settling or deciding on the merits of each case and is published solely for the purpose of explaining the Board's reasons for its decision and its policy in like cases.
Retention and Disposal Standards: Case files are kept by the Board for three years and then destroyed.
RDA Number: 96/025
Related Record Number: CIR OPS 010
TBS Registration: 000101
Bank Number: CIR PPU 005

Standard Personal Information Banks

Please see the Introduction to this publication for the descriptions of Standard Personal Information Banks.

Access to Information and Privacy Requests

Application for Employment

Automated Document, Records, Information Management Systems

Business Continuity Planning

Electronic Network Monitoring Logs

Governor in Council Appointments

Hospitality

Internal Communications

Internal Disclosure of Wrongdoing in the Workplace

Personnel Security Screening

Professional Services Contracts

Public Communications

Relocation

Travel

Classes of Personal Information

Other Personal Information Banks
Other case files and subject files held by the Case Management Secretariat may contain personal information such as names of individuals, addresses, position titles, job descriptions, salaries, and membership in a trade union. The information is not retrievable by personal identifiers and is collected solely for the purpose of administering the Canada Labour Code. All files are organized by file number and are maintained by the Case Management Secretariat at headquarters in Ottawa. Regional offices retain duplicate files for the purposes of investigation until the settlement of a case. Some personal information such as job descriptions and salaries may be published in written judgments where it is pertinent to the background of a case in which the Board decides its decision requires formal elaboration. Such information is usually the result of testimony given at public hearings.

Additional Information

Please see the Introduction to this publication for information on access procedures under the provisions of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act.

For additional information about the programs and activities of Canada Industrial Relations Board, please contact:

Headquarters
C.D. Howe Building
240 Sparks Street, 4th Floor West
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0X8

Telephone: 1-800-575-9696
TTY: 1-800-267-6511
Facsimile: 613-947-5407
E-mail: info@cirb-ccri.gc.ca
Internet: www.cirb-ccri.gc.ca

Atlantic Region
Queen Square
45 Alderney Drive, Suite 600
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia B2Y 2N6

Telephone: 902-426-7069
Facsimile: 902-426-7397

National Capital Region
C.D. Howe Building
240 Sparks Street, 4th Floor West
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0X8

Telephone: 613-947-5369
Facsimile: 613-941-4461

Quebec Region
Tour KPMG
600 de Maisonneuve Blvd. West ,7th Floor, Suite 700
Montreal, Quebec H3A 3J2

Telephone: 514-283-9171
Facsimile: 514-283-3590

Ontario Region
1 Front Street West, 5th Floor East, Suite 5300
Toronto, Ontario M5J 2X7

Telephone: 416-973-3783
Facsimile: 416-973-6543

Western Region
757 West Hastings Street, Suite 410
Vancouver, British Columbia V6C 1A1

Telephone: 604-666-8220
Facsimile: 604-666-6071

Western Satellite Office
400 St.Mary Avenue, Suite 304
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3C 4K5

Telephone: 204-983-3147
Facsimile: 204-983-3170

Reading Room

In accordance with the Access to Information Act, an area on the premises of this institution has been designated as a public reading room. The address is:

C.D. Howe Building
240 Sparks Street, 4th Floor West
Ottawa, Ontario

Canada Industrial Relations Board

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Sources of FederalGovernment Information2008