(Montreal) The Supreme Court is denying Hydro-Québec’s motion for leave to appeal a decision affecting its management rights related to unilateral changes to the working conditions of some of its employees.
The dispute dates back to 2019, when Hydro-Québec, as an employer, unilaterally changed the working conditions of cell phone operators who worked at certain hydroelectric power plants in the Manicouagan region. These working conditions were set out in consent forms and the application dates from the 1980s.
The Trades Union, a branch of the FTQ-affiliated Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), was unhappy with the change in its members’ working conditions and had lodged a complaint.
The arbitrator dismissed the union’s complaint, arguing that the complaint fell within the employer’s management rights.
In the first instance, the judge concluded that the arbitrator’s decision was unreasonable. He overturned the arbitrator’s decision, upheld the complaint and ordered Hydro-Québec to respect the consent agreements.
The judge had also returned the file to another arbitrator to rule on the union’s claim for monetary compensation for the injured workers.
In the next step, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal on the grounds that the arbitrator’s decision was unreasonable.
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