Canadian Labour Reporter

JANUARY 13, 2014 2 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2014 Layoff notices at B.C. college violated contract TERRACE, B.C. — A college in British Co- lumbia is getting a lesson in following the rules. After issuing layoff notices to its faculty in 2012, Northwest Community College — based in Terrace, B.C. — was found in violation of the collective agree- ment, arbitrator Rod Germaine ruled on Jan. 3. The manner in which layoff notic- es were given violated the terms and conditions spelled out in the collective agreement, he said. As well, Germaine noted the college's actions towards in- dividual faculty staff members also led to material losses — and under the ar- bitrator's award, meant those employ- ees were entitled to additional relief. "We knew going into this arbitration that the employer was ignoring the col- lective agreement," said Cindy Oliver, president of the Federation of Post Sec- ondary Educators of B.C. (FPSE), one of the two unions representing faculty members at the college. "Unfortunately, the administration at Northwest decided to follow an expen- sive and time-consuming litigation that has undermined labour relations at the college," added Kevin Rose, national representative for the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE). "Going to arbitration is a very expensive pro- cess, and in this case was completely unnecessary. But the administration at NWCC simply ignored our initial advice that their approach to the layoffs was wrong-headed." Administration at Northwest said they are ready to move on. "I am pleased with the efforts that have been made by both the college and the union to take collective respon- sibility and identify solutions what will allow the college to move forward," said Denise Henning, president and CEO of the college. "The administra- tion will continue to work proactively with the unions to ensure that we ad- dress the conclusions of the arbitration as determined by (the arbitrator) and by the mutually agreed upon terms and conditions found in our collective agreement." Further reforms to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program OTTAWA — Minister of employment and social development and minister for multiculturalism Jason Kenney and citizenship and immigration minister Chris Alexander have announced fur- ther changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP). The reforms — results of the federal government's ongoing review of the TFWP — were announced in late 2013. Regulatory and administrative changes to the program will give the government authority to conduct in- spections to ensure employers are meeting the conditions of the program and allow the government to ban non- compliant employers from the program for two years. "These changes are part of a larger reform of the program that demon- strates our government's commitment to protect foreign workers from the risk of abuse and exploitation," Alex- ander said. "One of the goals of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program is to deal with labour shortages on a tem- porary basis, and these reforms will help ensure that the program is used as intended." The newly announced reforms will also strengthen criteria for assessing La- bour Market Opinion (LMO) and work permit applications. These changes will provide the government with authority to revoke or suspend LMOs, to refuse to process LMO applications, and to re- voke or refuse to process work permits. "We are taking action to ensure that Canadians are always first in line for available jobs," Kenney said of the re- cent reforms. FORMERLY CLV REPORTS Serving labour relations professionals since 1956 www.labour-reporter.com Published weekly by Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. 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If legal or other expert assistanceis required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. The analysis contained herein represents the opinion of the authors and should in no way be construed as being either official or unofficial policy of any governmental body. ISSN 0045-5113 Publications Registration 2089 Canadian Labour Reporter is part of the Canadian HR Reporter group of publications. Visit www.hrreporter.com for more information. canadian labour reporter Labour Briefs A look at labour news from across Canada. For regular news updates, visit Canadian Labour Reporter at www.labour-reporter.com

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