Ambulance Services Collective Bargaining Act, 2001, S.O. 2001, c. 10 - Bill 58

• Jurisdiction: Ontario
• Bill Number: 58
• Date: 29 June 2001

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This Explanatory Note was written as a reader’s aid to Bill 58 and does not form part of the law. Bill 58 has been enacted as Chapter 10 of the Statutes of Ontario, 2001.

The purpose of the Bill is to ensure the provision of essential ambulance services in the event of a strike or lock-out.

It would require employers who provide ambulance services and trade unions that represent employees involved in providing ambulance services to negotiate an essential ambulance services agreement. The agreement would require that essential ambulance services continue to be provided during a strike or lock-out. The Bill also provides for the employer to be able to call additional ambulance workers in to work for a temporary period for unanticipated emergencies that arise during a strike or lock-out if the number of ambulance workers required to work under the agreement is insufficient.

The parties may apply to the Ontario Labour Relations Board if they are unable to negotiate an essential ambulance services agreement. They can also apply to the Board to amend or enforce such an agreement.

Either party could apply to the Board for a declaration that the agreement would deprive employees of a meaningful right to strike or the employer of a meaningful right to lock employees out. In such a declaration, the Board could order various remedies, including amending the agreement and appointing a mediator. The Board may also divide the bargaining unit into two units, one consisting of ambulance workers and one consisting of other employees, and refer the ambulance workers’ dispute to final and binding interest arbitration.

If the Board orders arbitration, any strike or lock-out of any employees in the ambulance workers’ bargaining unit would be terminated, and the terms and conditions of employment that were applicable to them prior to the date on which a strike or lock-out became lawful would be restored. If the parties are unable to agree on an arbitrator, the Minister of Labour would be able to appoint an arbitrator and to select the method of arbitration, which could include mediation-arbitration or mediation-final offer selection. The arbitrator would be required to consider specified criteria in making an award.

The Bill incorporates the offence provisions and certain remedial provisions of the Labour Relations Act, 1995 to deal with matters such as unlawful strikes or lock-outs.

chapter 10

An Act to ensure the provision
of essential ambulance services
in the event of a strike
or lock-out of ambulance workers

Assented to June 29, 2001

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Definitions

1. (1) In this Act,

“ambulance” has the same meaning as in the Ambulance Act; (“ambulance”)

“ambulance worker” means,

(a) an employee who is an emergency medical attendant or a paramedic, as defined in the Ambulance Act,

(b) an employee whose duties include dispatching ambulances, or

(c) an employee prescribed as an ambulance worker by a regulation made under this Act; (“préposé aux services d’ambulance”)

“Board” means the Ontario Labour Relations Board; (“Commission”)

“employer” means an employer of ambulance workers; (“employeur”)

“essential ambulance services” means,

(a) ambulance services provided to,

(i) persons who have suffered a trauma or an acute onset of illness, either of which could endanger their life, limb or functioning, or

(ii) persons who have been judged by a physician or a physician’s delegate to be in an unstable medical condition and to require, while being transported, both the care of a physician, a nurse, another health care provider, an emergency medical attendant or a paramedic and the use of a stretcher,

(b) call-taking and dispatching services required for the provision of ambulance services,

(c) if the employer provides integrated dispatching services, call-taking and dispatching services required for the provision of fire protection services or police services or both,

(d) work that is incidental to a service described in clause (a), (b) or (c),

(e) work that is performed on or in connection with an ambulance to protect health or safety, or

(f) the prescribed services; (“services d’ambulance essentiels”)

“essential ambulance services agreement” means an essential ambulance services agreement under section 4; (“entente sur les services d’ambulance essentiels”)

“integrated dispatching services” means call-taking and dispatching services required for the provision of ambulance services and provided together with call-taking and dispatching services required for the provision of fire protection services or police services or both; (“services de répartition intégrés”)

“Minister” means the Minister of Labour; (“ministre”)

“prescribed” means prescribed by the regulations made under this Act. (“prescrit”)

Interpretation

(2) Expressions used in this Act have the same meaning as in the Labour Relations Act, 1995 unless the context requires otherwise.

Application

2. (1) Subject to subsections (2) to (4), this Act applies with respect to the following employers, employers’ organizations, trade unions, councils of trade unions and employees if the Labour Relations Act, 1995 also applies with respect to their collective bargaining:

1. Employers who employ ambulance workers and employers’ organizations that represent those employers.

2. Trade unions and councils of trade unions that act as bargaining agents for employees in a bargaining unit that includes those ambulance workers.

3. The employees in a bargaining unit that includes those ambulance workers.

Crown Employees Collective
Bargaining Act, 1993

(2) This Act does not apply with respect to employers, employers’ organizations, trade unions, councils of trade unions, and employees described in subsection (1) if the Crown Employees Collective Bargaining Act, 1993 applies with respect to them.

Hospital Labour Disputes Arbitration Act

(3) This Act does not apply with respect to employers, employers’ organizations, trade unions, councils of trade unions and employees described in subsection (1) if the Hospital Labour Disputes Arbitration Act applies with respect to them.

Air ambulances

(4) This Act applies with respect to the provision of air ambulance services only if and to the extent that the regulations provide.

Conflict with Labour Relations Act, 1995

(5) If there is a conflict between this Act and the Labour Relations Act, 1995 with respect to employers, employers’ organizations, trade unions, councils of trade unions or employees to whom this Act applies, this Act governs.

Essential ambulance services agreement required

3. (1) An employer and a trade union who are bound by a collective agreement or who are negotiating a first collective agreement shall negotiate an essential ambulance services agreement.

Timing

(2) If they are bound by a collective agreement, they shall begin to negotiate an essential ambulance services agreement no later than 180 days before the collective agreement expires.

Same

(3) If they have never had a collective agreement, they shall begin to negotiate an essential ambulance services agreement,

(a) no later than 15 days after notice is given under section 16 of the Labour Relations Act, 1995; or

(b) if no notice was given under that section but the parties have met and bargained, no later than 15 days after their first meeting.

Same

(4) An employer and a trade union may begin to negotiate an essential ambulance services agreement at a time later than that required under subsection (2) or (3) if they agree to do so.

Duty to bargain

(5) They shall bargain in good faith and make every reasonable effort to make an essential ambulance services agreement.

Employers’ organizations

(6) If an employer is represented in collective bargaining by an employers’ organization, the employers’ organization may negotiate and make an essential ambulance services agreement on the employer’s behalf.

Council of trade unions

(7) If a trade union is represented in collective bargaining by a council of trade unions, the council of trade unions may negotiate and make an essential ambulance services agreement on the trade union’s behalf.

Terms of agreement

4. (1) An essential ambulance services agreement shall,

(a) set out the number of ambulance workers who are required to provide essential ambulance services;

(b) provide that the required number of ambulance workers shall continue working during any strike or lock-out of employees in the bargaining unit of which they are members;

(c) for the purposes of the definition of “essential ambulance services” in subsection 1 (1),

(i) specify the work that is incidental to a service for the purposes of clause (d) of that definition,

(ii) specify the work that is performed on or in connection with an ambulance to protect health or safety for the purposes of clause (e) of that definition, and

(iii) specify the work that is necessary to carry out a prescribed service referred to in clause (f) of that definition;

(d) identify the ambulance workers who will provide essential ambulance services under the agreement and the additional ambulance workers who will be subject to being called in to work under section 5; and

(e) set out the order in which the ambulance workers referred to in clause (d) shall be called in to work.

Availability of others irrelevant

(2) The number of ambulance workers that are required to provide essential ambulance services shall be determined without considering whether other persons are available to provide the essential ambulance services.

More than one classification

(3) If there is more than one classification for an employer’s ambulance workers, the essential ambulance services agreement shall deal with each classification separately.

Use of employees not covered...