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Social services

Grievance Settlement Board Dismisses Group Grievance Against Ontario Public Service Employees Union

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

The Grievance Settlement Board has issued a decision dismissing a group grievance filed by the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) on behalf of Earnel Williams, Vanessa Giorno, and Joy Webster against the Crown in Right of Ontario (Ministry of the Attorney General). The grievance alleged that the employees were unfairly reclassified from Court Reporter 2 to Court Reporter 1 and red-circled at their current wage rate in 2014, despite performing the same job as the new Court and Client Representative (CCR) position.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Grievance Settlement Board dismissed the group grievance due to a substantial delay of almost 9 years in filing the complaint, from June 11, 2014, to May 12, 2023.
  • The Board found that the Grievors had been informed of the reclassification and salary protection in 2014, and that there was no indication that they disputed the reclassification for close to 9 years.
  • The Board cited established jurisprudence in OPSEU (Liantzakis) and OPSEU (Bremmer) v. Ontario (Attorney General) to conclude that prejudice can be presumed where the passage of time is significant, and that the delay justifies dismissing the grievance.
  • The grievance alleged violations of Articles 2, 3, and 7 of the Collective Agreement, as well as Employment Standards Act, Ontario Human Rights Code, and Occupational Health and Safety Act.
  • The CCR position, created in 2023, has a higher classification and wage rate than the Court Reporter 1 position.
  • The Grievors claim that they are performing the same job as the CCR position and have not received an hourly pay increase since January 1, 2012.
  • The appropriate classification and wage rate of the Grievors has been red-circled since 2014, and they will not receive further salary progression until the maximum Court Reporter salary exceeds $1,066.76 per week.

Statistics:

  • The grievance was filed on May 12, 2023, and the decision was issued on September 4, 2025.
  • The Grievors were classified as Court Reporter 2 under the Collective Agreement in 2014, with a salary of $1,066.76 per week.
  • The CCR position was created in 2023, with a higher classification and wage rate than the Court Reporter 1 position.
  • The Grievors have not received an hourly pay increase since January 1, 2012, with their current hourly rate remaining at $29.31.

Sources:

  • OPSEU (Liantzakis) and Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services, 2014 Can LII 70084 (ON GSB)
  • OPSEU (Bremmer) v. Ontario (Attorney General), 2020 CanLII 14087(On GSB)
  • Collective Agreement between the Crown in Right of Ontario (Ministry of the Attorney General) and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union.

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