Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER October 30, 2017 14 FEATURES Get instant access to YOUR LEGAL COMMUNITY British Columbia's vast legal community is right at your fingertips with the British Columbia Legal Telephone Directory. You get instant access to over 10,500 lawyers and law offices. Each year we ensure this directory includes the most up-to-date names, phone numbers, mailing addresses and emails, so you don't have to search anywhere else. Get quick access to: • Courts • Judges and court officials • Law related services and organizations • Federal and provincial government departments • Boards and commissions • Notaries • Shorthand Reporters • Land surveyors • Paralegals Spiralbound • October 2017 $49* • L7798-7857 Multiple copy discounts available *Plus applicable taxes and shipping & handling (Prices subject to change without notice) Order your copy today. Visit www.carswell.com or call 1-800-387-5164 for a 30-day, no risk evaluation 2018 British Columbia Legal Telephone Directory Includes British Columbia, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon HR METRICS Evidence-based labour relations Supporting the search for common ground By Jane Cooper, Shannon Jackson and Lisa Irish L abour relations practitio- ners — whether they work for employers or unions — have long relied on evidence to support their bargaining posi- tions. But what they do with that evidence is changing. In the past, evidence was often used as a tool to strengthen adver- sarial positions. Now, evidence is being used by both sides to help fi nd common ground where col- laboration can grow for the ben- efi t of the organization. Both parties are working to adapt to technological change and social media to engage younger workers. And both unions and employers are expressing an inter- est in partnering on initiatives to tackle challenges related to health and safety, precarious work and marginalized groups. Multiple sources of evidence Labour relations metrics are a critical subset of HR metrics that can provide evidence to sup- port collaborative initiatives. Of course, internal HR metrics don't stand alone — they need to be integrated with complementary sources of evidence such as: ad- ditional organizational evidence from fi nance and operations; the judgment of experienced practi- tioners; the perspectives of inter- nal and external stakeholders; and relevant external fi ndings from independent sources, including government, academic or scien- tifi c research. As employers and unions be- come more strategic in their use of HR data, they are looking for evidence in several core areas. Total rewards: As they pre- pare to negotiate collective agree- ments, employers and unions look for the latest forecasts for wages, benefi ts and the length of collec- tive agreements. Workplace change: Both par- ties are also interested in how other organizations are negotiat- ing around workplace disruptions, such as automation, digital and technological change, legislative change, fl exible workplaces, and organizational design changes that aff ect scheduling and outsourcing. e structure of HR: Employ- ers often compare the size and structure of labour relations teams. Grievances: Organizations can learn from analyzing grievance processes and outcomes. Counting adversarial disputes e number of grievances as a percentage of headcount is a ba- sic indicator of a confrontational work climate at an organization. Comparing the number of new grievances during the quarter with the number still ongoing gives a more nuanced picture of the proportion of grievances that are taking time to settle. Segmenting grievance data by permanent and non-permanent union headcounts, and by busi- ness unit or by geographic region, allows an organization to focus on groups with more disputes. From there, targeted strategies can be identifi ed to resolve issues. Here are some grievance-spe- cifi c metrics: • grievances as a percentage of unionized headcount • grievances — time to fi rst contact • new grievances as a percentage of unionized headcount • arbitrated grievances as a per- centage of grievances open • percentage of grievances closed. How eff ectively grievances are handled can be a better indica- tor of the level of collaboration at an organization. A majority of managers were satisfi ed or very satisfi ed with their current dis- pute-resolution processes, found a 2015 report by the Conference Board of Canada, but only a quar- ter of labour representatives felt the same way. However, both sides agreed arbitration was "a cumber- some, unpredictable process," and delays were frustrating. The time-to-first-contact for grievances metric averages the number of days it takes for labour relations staff to sit down with the union and respond to grievances. is can be a telling metric. If one assumes that the faster the two parties get together to talk, the more likely the grievance will have a better outcome, this metric can be an indicator of how well pro- cesses are working. Even more useful would be metrics that benchmark issues that never reach the grievances or arbitration stage. e benefi ts of mediating disputes before they get into the grievance process, or of coaching union and management teams on how to better communi- cate and resolve confl icts on their own, seems obvious, according to one conflict-resolution advisor from the federal government. However, it is diffi cult to quan- tify the resulting financial and productivity savings. Without quantifi able metrics, measures and external bench- marks that compare work envi- ronments that include coaching, communications and mediation with work environments that lack these features, building a solid business case for mediation services becomes very challeng- ing. is is an emerging area of metrics, but the signs are encour- aging that both management and unions are more interested in collecting data that will support collaborative approaches like this than they were in the past. rough consistent, large-scale data collection and statistical anal- ysis, benchmarking exercises have the potential to provide accurate evidence to support employers and unions as they transition from hard adversarial stances to a more nuanced, co-operative outlook. Both at the Conference Board of Cana- da, Jane Cooper is a research associate and Shannon Jackson is an associate director. Lisa Irish is director of the HR Metrics Service. For more information, visit www.conferenceboard.ca or www. hrmetricsservice.org. Some broad external labour relations indicators: • days lost to work stoppages • days lost to lockouts • wage settlements • wage forecasts • ratifi ed settlements Source: Employment and Social Development Canada Sample metrics for collective agreements: • average length of collective agreements • base pay increases • ratifi cation rates • binding arbitration rates • top bargaining issues Source: The Conference Board of Canada messages. is placed his conduct "at the more serious end" of the ha- rassment scale, said the court. In addition, the court disagreed with Watkins' argument that the harassment should be considered less serious because Li didn't want him fi red. "It is not up to the victim of sex- ual harassment to determine the proper course of corporate action, nor to take responsibility for the future employment prospects of the harasser," it said. Watkins' conduct was seri- ous enough that it didn't require a warning before termination, since as a management employee, he should have known better and had a higher standard of conduct, said the court. Given the eff ect of his behaviour on Li, the other employees, and the working envi- ronment — along with his failure to recognize it was unacceptable — termination was justifi ed, said the court. e court acknowledged that Willow Park failed to conduct an adequate investigation, as it didn't speak with Li and didn't allow Watkins an adequate time to respond more meaningfully to the allegations, but Watkins' blan- ket denial in spite of the evidence from Li, other employees and the management committee's own observations over a few months made it diffi cult to substitute dis- cipline short of termination. Had the golf course conducted an investigation, "it would have simply confi rmed Ms. Li's allega- tions and the information coming from the other employees," said the court. "(Watkins') behaviour was di- rectly inconsistent with his obli- gations to manage his department in a professional way and ensure a safe and respectful workplace for his subordinates," said the court in upholding the termination. "It was also inconsistent with his obliga- tion to protect his employer from potential lawsuits arising from this precise type of misconduct." For more information see: • Watkins v. Willow Park Golf Course Ltd, 2017 CarswellAlta 1678 (Alta. Q.B.). Jeff rey Smith is the editor of Canadian Employment Law Today. For more information, visit www.employment- lawtoday.com. Blanket denial HARASSMENT < pg. 5

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