Under section 74 of the Labour Relations Act, 1995, your union must not act in a manner that is:

• Arbitrary — decisions made randomly, carelessly, or without proper investigation
• Discriminatory — treating you differently based on race, sex, disability, union politics, or other protected grounds
• In bad faith — acting dishonestly, with hidden motives, or deliberately against your interests

This duty applies to all aspects of representation — including grievance handling, collective bargaining, and disciplinary proceedings.

The DFR sets a floor — not a guarantee of perfect outcomes. The union:

• Does NOT have to win every grievance for you
• Does NOT have to proceed with weak or frivolous grievances
• Does NOT have to take every dispute to arbitration
• Can make errors in judgment, provided they act in good faith
• Can prioritize some grievances over others, if done fairly

Quick FAQs

Common DFR Situations

• Union refused to file a grievance without explanation
• Union dropped your grievance without telling you
• Union settled your grievance without consulting you
• Union missed grievance deadlines due to carelessness
• Union treated you differently from other members in similar situations
• Union officials misled you about the status of your case

Decertification (formally: Termination of Bargaining Rights) is the process by which employees vote to end their union's right to represent them. If successful, the collective agreement ends and employees become non-unionized.

This is a right granted to employees under s. 63 of the Labour Relations Act, 1995. The employer cannot apply — only employees can.

Key Facts

• Only employees can apply — not the employer
• Must be filed in the "open period"
• Requires majority employee support
• OLRB conducts the vote by secret ballot
• Employer must not assist or fund the campaign
• Construction rules are significantly different

Union displacement — sometimes called "raiding" — is the process where a different union applies to replace an existing union as the bargaining agent for a group of employees.

Unlike decertification (where employees become non-unionized), displacement means employees remain unionized under a different union.

This process is governed primarily by ss. 67–68 of the Labour Relations Act, 1995.

Only a trade union — not individual employees — can file an application to displace an existing union. However, employees play a critical role:

• Employees must authorize the applicant union to represent them
• Support cards or statements signed by employees are submitted with the application
• The same timing rules (open periods) apply as for decertification

If you are unhappy with your current union, you can approach a different union and ask them to file a displacement application. The new union will typically organize support among the employees before filing.

The same open period rules that govern decertification apply to displacement. The application must be filed during the open period — generally the last 3 months before the collective agreement expires.

If there is no collective agreement in place, an application can be filed after 12 months from the existing union's certification date.

During a displacement application, the existing collective agreement remains in force until:

• The application is dismissed, or
• A new collective agreement is reached with the new union

The employer cannot unilaterally change your terms and conditions of employment while a displacement proceeding is underway.

FAQs on Displacement

An unfair labour practice (ULP) is any action by an employer or a union that violates the prohibited conduct provisions of the Labour Relations Act, 1995. ULPs are governed primarily by sections 70 through 77 of the Act.

Unlike a grievance — which is about a breach of the collective agreement — a ULP complaint goes directly to the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) under the statute itself. You do not need to go through the union grievance process to file a ULP complaint. In fact, if the union is the one committing the ULP, you can file against the union directly.

The union accountability angle: When an employer commits a ULP affecting you — particularly retaliating against you for union activity — your union has an obligation to respond. That means investigating, challenging the employer's conduct, and where necessary, filing a ULP complaint on your behalf. A union that is aware of employer ULPs and does nothing may itself be in breach of the Duty of Fair Representation under s. 74 of the LRA. The two complaints can — and often should — be filed together.

Sections 70, 72, and 73 of the LRA prohibit specific employer conduct toward workers involved in union activity. These are not just restrictions on the employer — they are situations where your union has a legal obligation to step in and protect you. If your employer crosses these lines and your union fails to respond, that failure may ground a separate Duty of Fair Representation complaint against the union.

Prohibited employer conduct includes:

Sections 76 and 77 of the LRA also prohibit unions from engaging in coercive or improper conduct. A union cannot:

The OLRB can issue interim orders — quickly

In urgent ULP cases, the OLRB has the power under s. 98 of the LRA to issue an interim order — a temporary ruling that applies while the full case is being decided. This is one of the most powerful but least-known remedies in Ontario labour law.

An interim order can:

• Require an employer to reinstate a dismissed employee immediately while the complaint proceeds
• Prohibit an employer from continuing to threaten or discipline workers during an organizing campaign
• Require a union to stop blocking a lawful decertification or displacement campaign
• Preserve the status quo while the full hearing proceeds

To get an interim order, the applicant must show the OLRB that: (1) there is an arguable case on the merits; (2) there will be irreparable harm if the order isn't granted; and (3) the balance of harm favours granting interim relief.

Key Legislation

• s. 70 — Interference with union formation
• s. 72 — Employer financial support of union prohibited
• s. 73 — Employer threats, dismissal, discrimination
• s. 76 — Union coercion and intimidation
• s. 77 — General anti-intimidation provision
• s. 96 — OLRB jurisdiction, 1-year limit
• s. 98 — OLRB power to issue interim orders

Under section 92(1) of the Labour Relations Act, 1995, every trade union has a legal obligation to provide its members with financial statements upon request. This is your right as a dues-paying member — not a favour the union can choose to grant or deny.

The purpose of this provision is straightforward: members fund the union through dues, and the law gives them the right to see how that money is managed.

Under s. 92(1), the union must provide you with a copy of its most recently produced financial statements. The Act requires those statements to include, at minimum:

• Statement of assets and liabilities — what the union owns and owes
• Statement of income and expenditures — where dues money came from and where it went

These statements must cover the union as a whole. If your local is a branch of a larger union, the obligation applies to the local's own finances. Whether you are also entitled to the parent union's statements may depend on your union's structure — a lawyer can advise on this.

Quick facts

• Any current member can make a request
• The request must be in writing
• Statements must cover assets, liabilities, income, and expenditures
• Union must provide the most recently produced statements
• Refusal can be taken to the OLRB
• No filing fee for OLRB applications
• Filing with the OLRB often prompts quick compliance

Under section 69(1) of the Labour Relations Act, 1995, when an employer who is bound by a collective agreement sells, leases, transfers, or otherwise disposes of the business — or any part of it — the new owner or operator is automatically bound by that collective agreement.

In plain terms: the union and the collective agreement follow the work, not the employer. A change in ownership or control does not wipe out your bargaining rights or your contract.

The new employer (called the successor employer) steps into the shoes of the previous employer. It inherits the existing collective agreement, any ongoing grievances, and the union's bargaining rights — whether it wants to or not.

Section 69 can be triggered by a range of business transactions and changes. Common examples include:

• Sale of a business — the whole company or a division is sold to a new owner
• Transfer or lease — the business or an operation is handed over or leased to another entity
• Amalgamation or merger — two companies combine and the unionized work continues
• Contracting out / privatization — work previously done in-house is outsourced to a contractor, or a public service is privatized
• Change in corporate structure — a parent company absorbs a subsidiary, or vice versa, and the unionized work continues
• Re-tendering of a service contract — one contractor loses a service contract to another and the same workers continue doing the same work

When the question is whether a sale or transfer was a true "succession," the OLRB considers several factors. No single factor is decisive — the Board looks at the overall picture:

Quick facts

• Successor rights are automatic — no application needed for them to apply
• The new employer cannot opt out of the collective agreement
• Do not sign new individual employment contracts without union advice
• Outstanding grievances survive the transfer
• Construction sector has different rules under s. 69(4)
• Act quickly — delays can make violations harder to remedy

Unlike federally regulated workplaces — where the Canada Labour Code has detailed provisions on internal union democracy — Ontario's Labour Relations Act, 1995 does not prescribe specific rules for how unions must run their internal elections. Instead, union elections in Ontario are governed by three sources:

Subject to the specific rules in your union's constitution, members generally have the following rights:

• Right to stand for office — if you meet the eligibility requirements in the constitution, you cannot be arbitrarily blocked from nomination
• Right to vote — eligible members must be permitted to participate in the vote
• Right to proper notice — elections must be announced with the notice period required by the constitution
• Right to campaign — candidates must be permitted to communicate with members within reasonable limits
• Right to scrutineers — candidates are generally entitled to have a representative observe the ballot count
• Right to a secret ballot — where required by the constitution
• Right to appeal — through the union's internal appeals process, as set out in the constitution
• Right to a copy of the constitution — on written request

These are situations where the union's conduct may cross the line into arbitrary, discriminatory, or bad faith action:

Key Legislation

• s. 74 LRA — Duty of Fair Representation
• s. 96 LRA — OLRB jurisdiction
• Your union's constitution — primary governing document