The Quebec Administrative Labour Tribunal has intervened in the case of an employer who had filed its own draft collective agreement, reducing it from 82 to 30 pages, adding several times the words "at the sole discretion of the employer" and even requesting that the union obtain its authorization to meet with workers outside of work hours.

Initially, the court heard two complaints from the National Garage Employees Union and its employer, Brandt Tractor, both accusing each other of bad faith bargaining and both asking the court to order the resumption of negotiations.

In the end, the court ruled in favour of the union and found that the employer's complaint had "no merit."

The union followed the rules and properly initiated the bargaining process for the renewal of the collective agreement. In fact, it was the union that applied to the Ministry of Labour for conciliation.

The employer did not respond to the union's requests, preferring to file "a nine-page memorandum and a draft agreement to prune the collective agreement of numerous provisions, while reducing the text from 82 to 30 pages", the tribunal reported.

The tribunal found that it was the employer that tabled a proposal that contained "unreasonable clauses contrary to the very nature of collective bargaining, in contravention of its duty to bargain in good faith."

Among other things, the draft agreement tabled by the employer contained clauses stating that "union representatives must obtain prior approval from the branch manager to meet with management or employees outside of their working hours."

The employer wanted to give itself a very wide margin to manoeuvre in determining working conditions, the tribunal said.

"Other than the obligation on employees to respect the employer's policies and directives, which it had the exclusive right to establish and modify, this complete discretion would apply, in particular, to the protection of their collective rights and those of their union, to the conditions for meeting with the manager of the establishment, for the acquisition of seniority rights, labour movement, job classifications and movement, requirements to access a vacancy or maintain employment in the event of layoff and recall, changes that may be made to the group insurance plan, safety equipment and policies and procedures related to the occupational health and safety program, choice of annual leave," the tribunal reported

Even compensation was affected.

"Compensation could include a premium based on gross profit on parts, the rate of which could be changed from time to time at the discretion of the employer," the tribunal said. "The same applies to the reimbursement of expenses incurred in the course of work under a policy that may be modified from time to time at the sole discretion of the employer."

Administrative Law Judge Raymond Gagnon granted the union's request, ordering Brandt to file a proposal redacted of any language such as "at the sole discretion of the employer" or "the employer has the exclusive right."

It also ordered Brandt to resume negotiations in conciliation in September.

-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on July 19, 2022.