The Ministry of Labour and the employer were not required to hand over certain documents requested by the union in a safety dispute, the Ontario Labour Relations Board has decided.
The issue in dispute was whether the employer was required to de-energize cables prior to entry into "Cable Chamber 428″. A Ministry of Labour inspector decided " no" and the union appealed to the OLRB. A worker had engaged in a work refusal.
The union asked the OLRB to order the MOL and employer to provide documents in numerous categories identified by the union, including any injury or near-miss or accident report involving energized cables from 1999 to present, and any reports of "cable chamber explosions".
The OLRB decided that the documents requested were not arguably relevant to the appeal in issue, which dealt only with Cable Chamber 428. The union's request for documents was "overly broad and lacks the precision needed to make any production order. It is also a fishing expedition that could unnecessarily protract this proceeding". Further, the employer had already produced numerous documents including those it intended to rely upon at the hearing.
Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 1 v Toronto Hydro-Electric System Limited, 2016 CanLII 65523 (ON LRB)
For more information, visit our Occupational Health & Safety Law blog at www.occupationalhealthandsafetylaw.com
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