Preparing for collective bargaining in Ontario comes down to three things: a clear, costed mandate before notice is given, a calendar built around the deadlines in the Labour Relations Act, 1995, and a plan for what happens if talks stall at conciliation. Federally regulated workplaces follow different rules under the Canada Labour Code, including a different freeze, strike preconditions and limits on replacement workers.
Confirm which law governs your bargaining
In Ontario, bargaining generally follows the Labour Relations Act, 1995 (the LRA). Federally regulated employers, such as banks, airlines and interprovincial railways, bargain under Part I of the Canada Labour Code instead. The LRA does not apply, or applies only in part, to groups such as police, firefighters, school board teachers and employees of colleges of applied arts and technology. Others, such as provincial correctional officers, cannot strike or lock out and must use interest arbitration.
Before notice: build the mandate
- Set the mandate: priorities, limits and who decides. The LRA leaves employer ratification to the employer, so settle board or executive sign-off early.
- Review recurring grievances and side letters, and cost every proposal, including benefits, scheduling, overtime and leave, not just wages.
- Know the unit. Under the LRA, all unit employees, union members or not, may vote in strike and ratification votes.
Notice and the first meeting (Ontario)
For a renewal, either party may give written notice to bargain within 90 days before the agreement expires, or during any period the agreement specifies. For a first agreement, the union gives written notice after certification or voluntary recognition. The parties must meet within 15 days (five in the construction industry) unless they agree to a longer period, and must bargain in good faith and make every reasonable effort to agree.
Plan for the statutory freeze (Ontario)
Under the LRA, once notice has been given and no collective agreement is in operation, neither side may alter wages or other terms of employment without the other's consent. Where the union was certified, the employer is frozen earlier, from the time it receives the Ontario Labour Relations Board's notice of the certification application. The freeze generally runs until a conciliation officer or mediator has been appointed and 14 days have passed after a no-board notice. Hold planned changes, or bring them to the table.
If talks stall: conciliation and the no-board (Ontario)
Where applicable, either party may ask the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development to appoint a conciliation officer at any time during bargaining, filing the most recent collective agreement, if any. Generally, if your sector is regulated only under the LRA, you must meet with a conciliation officer (or a mediator appointed at the parties' joint request) before you may legally strike or lock out.
If conciliation fails, the Minister usually issues a notice that no conciliation board will be appointed, commonly called a no-board. A legal strike or lock-out may then begin on the 17th day after its release, but never while a collective agreement is in operation. Outside the construction industry and some construction-union maintenance work, a strike also needs more than 50 per cent of those voting in a vote taken 30 days or less before expiry or any time after (for a first agreement, on or after the day a conciliation officer is appointed).
Other routes to a settlement (Ontario)
- Mediation. After a no-board, the Ministry can mediate if both parties agree, or they can jointly retain a private mediator.
- Voluntary interest arbitration. After notice, the parties may irrevocably agree in writing to final and binding arbitration of all remaining issues, replacing the LRA's conciliation, mediation, strike and lock-out provisions.
- Last-offer vote. An employer may ask the Minister to direct an employee vote on its last offer, once per round and not where the parties cannot strike or lock out. It does not change LRA time limits.
- First agreement arbitration. If talks fail after a no-board notice or conciliation board report, either party may ask the Board to direct arbitration. The Board decides within 30 days and directs it where bargaining failed for listed reasons, such as an employer's refusal to recognize the union.
Closing the deal (Ontario)
Under the LRA, a tentative agreement has no effect until ratified, generally by a secret-ballot vote in which more than 50 per cent of those voting are in favour. No ratification is needed for agreements imposed by the Board, settled by arbitration or accepted in a last-offer vote, or covering construction-industry or some construction-union maintenance employees. Each party must then file a copy with the Minister.
Federally regulated workplaces
- Under the Code, notice to bargain for a renewal may be given within four months before expiry, or a longer period the agreement provides.
- The parties must meet and begin bargaining within 20 days after notice unless they agree otherwise.
- From notice to bargain until the Code's conciliation steps and 21-day wait are complete (or, if later, until the CIRB rules on any maintenance-of-activities application or referral), the employer may not change pay or other terms for the unit without the union's consent.
- Within 15 days after notice, the parties must agree on what must continue during a strike or lockout to prevent an immediate and serious danger to public safety or health (even if the answer is nothing), and file it with the Minister and the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB).
- Either party may send the Minister a notice of dispute, copying the other party, and the Minister must respond within 15 days. No strike or lockout is lawful until, among other conditions, 21 days have passed since the Minister's notice, such as one that no conciliator will be appointed or that the conciliation officer has reported.
- Unless the other side has already begun a legal strike or lockout, a strike needs a secret-ballot vote approved by a majority of those voting within the previous 60 days (or a longer agreed period), and either side must give 72 hours' notice of a strike or lockout, copied to the Minister, once the maintenance agreement is filed or the CIRB has ruled.
- During a legal strike or lockout, the employer generally may not use replacement workers, such as staff hired or transferred in after notice to bargain, or contractors, to do bargaining unit work.
How Zamat Workplace Solutions can help
Zamat Workplace Solutions supports employers and unions with collective bargaining strategy, proposals, costing and negotiations, and with provincial and federal labour-relations matters.
Frequently asked questions
When can notice to bargain be given in Ontario?
For a renewal, either party may give written notice within 90 days before the collective agreement expires, or during any period the agreement specifies. The parties must then meet within 15 days (five days in the construction industry) unless they agree to a longer period.
Is conciliation required before a strike or lock-out in Ontario?
Generally, yes. If your sector is regulated only under the LRA, you must meet with a conciliation officer (or a mediator the Minister appoints at the parties' joint request) before you may legally strike or lock out. A legal strike or lock-out may begin on the 17th day after the Minister releases a no-board notice, provided no collective agreement is still in operation.
Can an employer change wages while bargaining is under way?
Generally not without the union's consent. Once notice has been given and no collective agreement is in operation, the LRA freezes wages and other terms and conditions, in most cases until a conciliation officer or mediator has been appointed and 14 days have passed after a no-board notice. Where the union was certified, the employer is frozen earlier, from the time it receives the Ontario Labour Relations Board's notice of the certification application. Federally regulated employers face a different freeze under the Canada Labour Code: it applies to the employer from the time notice to bargain is given and lasts until the Code's conciliation steps and 21-day wait are complete (or, if later, until the CIRB rules on any maintenance-of-activities application or referral), unless the union consents.
Do the Ontario rules apply to federally regulated employers?
Generally, no. Federally regulated workplaces, such as banks, airlines and interprovincial railways, bargain under Part I of the Canada Labour Code, which sets its own notice window, a 20-day deadline for the first meeting, a 15-day deadline for an agreement on activities that must continue during a work stoppage, a 21-day waiting period after the Minister's conciliation notice and limits on replacement workers.
Sources
- Collective bargaining Government of Ontario, Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development
- Labour Relations Act, 1995, S.O. 1995, c. 1, Sched. A Government of Ontario, e-Laws
- Canada Labour Code (R.S.C., 1985, c. L-2) Government of Canada, Justice Laws Website
The content of this site is general information and is not legal advice. Contacting the practice does not create a solicitor-client relationship. Appointment of a mediator or arbitrator is subject to confirmation and conflict screening.