Fasken successfully represented the City of Blainville against allegations by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (“CUPE”) that the city had illegally carried out temporary layoffs of permanent Union employees covered by job security packages.
Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada in March 2020, the Government of Québec implemented specific measures to control the spread of the coronavirus disease, while a public health state of emergency was declared for the entire Québec territory, leading to the closure of all businesses, industries and municipal facilities. Hence, the City of Blainville began, on a voluntary basis, a series of temporary layoffs of permanent employees.
CUPE, which represents 72% of municipal blue-collar and white-collar employees in cities throughout Québec, then filed two grievances against the city for illegal temporary layoffs and demanded the reimbursement of all amounts lost because of these layoffs.
In its decision rendered on November 27, 2020, the arbitration tribunal rejected CUPE’s two grievances and thus ruled in favour of the City of Blainville. The matter is currently under judicial review and will be heard by the Superior Court in October 2022.
This decision is of great importance since it constitutes a first in the history of Québec and will therefore set a legal precedent in Québec. In fact, the clause concerning job security in this specific case was “generic”, meaning that many employers have a similar clause in their collective agreement. Thus, this case was extremely important for each and every employer, because it now sets the tone on how the clause should be applied. Moreover, this case clearly stated that the pandemic was a case of “force majeure”, which also brings a strongly needed clarification on that regard.
In light of the above, this case was really important since it clarified many legal concepts in regard of the current pandemic. Furthermore, it clarified other aspects that will be applicable even after the pandemic, such as how a job security clause should be interpreted, and what are the employer’s obligations on such regard.
A Fasken team composed of Rhéaume Perreault and Marc-André Boucher represented the City of Blainville in connection with this case.
Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada in March 2020, the Government of Québec implemented specific measures to control the spread of the coronavirus disease, while a public health state of emergency was declared for the entire Québec territory, leading to the closure of all businesses, industries and municipal facilities. Hence, the City of Blainville began, on a voluntary basis, a series of temporary layoffs of permanent employees.
CUPE, which represents 72% of municipal blue-collar and white-collar employees in cities throughout Québec, then filed two grievances against the city for illegal temporary layoffs and demanded the reimbursement of all amounts lost because of these layoffs.
In its decision rendered on November 27, 2020, the arbitration tribunal rejected CUPE’s two grievances and thus ruled in favour of the City of Blainville. The matter is currently under judicial review and will be heard by the Superior Court in October 2022.
This decision is of great importance since it constitutes a first in the history of Québec and will therefore set a legal precedent in Québec. In fact, the clause concerning job security in this specific case was “generic”, meaning that many employers have a similar clause in their collective agreement. Thus, this case was extremely important for each and every employer, because it now sets the tone on how the clause should be applied. Moreover, this case clearly stated that the pandemic was a case of “force majeure”, which also brings a strongly needed clarification on that regard.
In light of the above, this case was really important since it clarified many legal concepts in regard of the current pandemic. Furthermore, it clarified other aspects that will be applicable even after the pandemic, such as how a job security clause should be interpreted, and what are the employer’s obligations on such regard.
A Fasken team composed of Rhéaume Perreault and Marc-André Boucher represented the City of Blainville in connection with this case.
Jurisdiction
- Canada
