Bill S-12

Regulations respecting Grievances

34.1 (1) The Board may make regulations in relation to the procedure for the presentation of grievances, including regulations respecting

(a) the manner and form of presenting a grievance and, in the case of group grievances, the form of the consent of the employees concerned;

(b) the maximum number of levels in each grievance process;

(c) the manner in which employees are to be advised of the names of the persons whose decision on a grievance constitutes a level in the grievance process, including the final level;

(d) the time within which a grievance may be presented at any level in a grievance process;

(e) the circumstances in which any level below the final level in a grievance process may be eliminated;

(f) the manner in which and the time within which a grievance may be referred to adjudication after it has been presented up to and including the final level in the grievance process;

(g) the establishment of rules of procedure for hearing a grievance; and

(h) the specification of the time within which and the persons to whom notices and other documents must be sent or given under this Part, and when the notices are deemed to have been sent, given or received.

(2) Any regulations made by the Board under subsection (1) in relation to the procedure for the presentation of grievances do not apply in respect of employees included in a bargaining unit for which a bargaining agent has been certified by the Board, to the extent that such regulations are inconsistent with any provisions contained in a collective agreement entered into by the bargaining agent and the employer applicable to those employees.

(3) The Board may make regulations in relation to the adjudication of grievances, including regulations respecting

(a) the manner in which and the time within which boards of adjudication are to be established;

(b) the procedure to be followed by adjudicators; and

(c) the form of decisions rendered by adjudicators.

DIVISION V

GENERAL

Review of Orders

35. (1) Subject to this Part, every order or decision of the Board is final and may not be questioned or reviewed in any court, except in accordance with the Federal Court Act on the grounds referred to in paragraph 18.1(4)(a), (b) or (e) of that Act.

(2) The Board has standing to appear in proceedings referred to in subsection (1) for the purpose of making submissions regarding the standard of review to be used with respect to decisions of the Board and the Board’s jurisdiction, policies and procedures.

(3) Except as permitted by subsection (1), no order, decision or proceeding of the Board made or carried on under or purporting to be made or carried on under this Part may, on any ground, including the ground that the order, decision or proceeding is beyond the jurisdiction of the Board to make or carry on or that, in the course of any proceeding, the Board for any reason exceeded or lost its jurisdiction,

(a) be questioned, reviewed, prohibited or restrained; or

(b) be made the subject of any proceedings in or any process of any court, whether by way of injunction, certiorari, prohibition, quo warranto or otherwise.

35.1 For the purpose of enforcing an adjudicator’s order, any person who was a party to the proceedings that resulted in the order being made may, after the day provided in the order for compliance or, if no such day is provided for, after 30 days have elapsed since the day the order was made, file in the Federal Court a copy of the order that is certified to be a true copy, and an order so filed becomes an order of that Court and may be enforced as such.

Offences Relating to Strikes

35.2 No employee shall participate in a strike.

35.3 No employee organization shall declare or authorize a strike of employees and no officer or representative of an employee organization shall counsel or procure the declaration or authorization of a strike of employees or the participation of employees in a strike, the effect of which is or would be to involve the participation of an employee in a strike in contravention of section 35.2.

35.4 (1) Every employee who contravenes section 35.2 is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine of not more than $1,000.

(2) Every officer or representative of an employee organization who contravenes section 35.3 is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine of not more than $1,000.

(3) Every employee organization that contravenes section 35.3 is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine of not more than $1,000 for each day that any strike declared or authorized by it in contravention of that section is or continues in effect.

35.5 A prosecution for an offence referred to in section 35.4 may be brought against an employee organization and in the name of that organization, and for the purposes of any such prosecution an employee organization shall be deemed to be a person and any act or thing done or omitted by an officer or representative of an employee organization within the scope of his or her authority to act on behalf of the employee organization shall be deemed to be an act or thing done or omitted by the employee organization.

Consent to Prosecution

35.6 No prosecution arising out of an alleged failure by any person to observe any prohibition contained in section 26.01, 26.02 or 26.03 and no prosecution for an offence referred to in section 35.4 shall be instituted except with the consent of the Board.

Protection of Members of the Board and Staff

35.7 No member of the Board, no adjudicator, conciliator or officer or employee of or person appointed by the Board and no arbitrator appointed under section 29.05 shall be required to give evidence in any civil action, suit or other proceeding respecting information obtained in the discharge of his or her duties under this Part.

Witness Fees

35.8 A person who is summoned by the Board or an arbitrator appointed under section 29.05 to attend as a witness in any proceedings thereof taken pursuant to this Part and who so attends is entitled to be paid an allowance for expenses, determined in accordance with the scale for the time being in force with respect to witnesses in civil suits in the superior court of the province in which the proceedings are being taken.

Oaths and Solemn Affirmations

35.9 Before commencing his or her functions, a person appointed under this Act shall take an oath or make a solemn affirmation in the following form before a commissioner of oaths or other person having authority to administer oaths or solemn affirmations:

I, ...................., do swear (or solemnly affirm) that I will faithfully, truly and impartially, to the best of my judgment, skill and ability, execute and perform the office of .....................

Provision of Facilities and Staff

36. The Board shall provide an arbitrator appointed under section 29.05 and an adjudicator with quarters and staff and such other facilities as are necessary to enable the arbitrator or adjudicator to carry out their respective functions under this Part.

Superannuation

36.1 Unless the Governor in Council otherwise orders in any case or class of cases, a person appointed under this Part shall be deemed not to be employed in the Public Service for the purposes of the Public Service Superannuation Act.

Report to Parliament

36.2 As soon as possible after the end of each year, the Board shall prepare a report on the administration of this Part during that year and shall cause the report to be laid before each House of Parliament on any of the first fifteen days on which that House sits after the report has been prepared.

7. Subsection 40(3) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(3) No answer or statement made in response to a question described in subsection (2) shall be used or receivable in any criminal or civil proceedings.

8. Subsection 41(9) of the Act is repealed.

9. Section 42 of the Act is repealed.

10. Sections 43 to 45.17 of the Act are replaced by the following:

43. (1) Where it is established to the satisfaction of an appropriate officer that a member has contravened the Code of Conduct and the appropriate officer is of the opinion that, having regard to the gravity of the contravention and to the surrounding circumstances, informal disciplinary action under section 41 would not be sufficient, the appropriate officer shall impose any one or more of the following sanctions on the member, namely,

(a) dismissal from the Force;

(b) direction to resign from the Force and, in default of resigning within fourteen days after being directed to do so, dismissal from the Force;

(c) demotion; or

(d) forfeiture of pay for a period not exceeding ten work days.

(2) In addition to imposing a sanction under subsection (1), an appropriate officer may take any one or more of the informal disciplinary actions referred to in paragraphs 41(1)(a) to (g).

(3) The sanction referred to in paragraph (1)(c) shall not be imposed on an inspector or a constable.

(4) No sanction shall be imposed by an appropriate officer under this section in respect of an alleged contravention of the Code of Conduct by a member after the expiration of one year from the time the contravention and the identity of that member became known to the appropriate officer.

11. Part V of the Act is replaced by the following:

PART V

DISCHARGE AND DEMOTION

44. (1) Any officer or any other member may be discharged or demoted on the ground, in this Part referred to as the “ground of unsuitability”, that the officer or member has repeatedly failed to perform the officer’s or member’s duties under this Act in a manner fitted to the requirements of the officer’s or member’s position, notwithstanding that the officer or member has been given reasonable assistance, guidance and supervision in an attempt to improve the performance of those duties.

(2) No officer or other member may be demoted under this Part by more than one rank or level.

(3) No inspector or constable may be demoted under this Part.

45. (1) Before any officer or any other member is discharged or demoted under this Part, the appropriate officer shall serve the officer or other member with a notice in writing of the intention to discharge or demote the officer or the other member, as the case may be.

(2) A notice of intention served on an officer or other member under subsection (1) shall include particulars of the acts or omissions constituting the ground of unsuitability on which the discharge or demotion, as the case may be, is based.

(3) An officer or other member who is served with a notice under subsection (1) shall be given a full and ample opportunity to examine the material relied on in support of the discharge or demotion, as the case may be.

(4) An officer or other member who is served with a notice under subsection (1) shall be discharged or demoted on the day specified in the notice.

Resignation

45.1 Nothing in this Part shall be construed as preventing the Commissioner from offering a member against whom a ground of unsuitability has been established pursuant to this Part the opportunity of resigning from the Force.

12. Subsection 45.36(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(2) No answer or statement made, in the course of attempting to dispose of a complaint informally, by the complainant or the member or other person whose conduct is the subject-matter of the complaint shall be used or receivable in any criminal or civil proceedings.

13. Paragraph 45.45(8)(b) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(b) any answer or statement made in response to a question described in subsection 24.1(7) or 40(2);

14. Subsection 45.45(10) of the Act is repealed.

15. Subsection 46(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

46. (1) In this section and sections 47 to 47.3, “board” means a board of inquiry appointed under section 24.1 and, except for the purposes of subsection (4), includes the Public Service Staff Relations Board and the Commission.

16. Section 47.1 of the Act is replaced by the following:

47.1 (1) Subject to any rules made pursuant to subsection (3), a member may be represented or assisted by any other member in any

(a) presentation of a grievance under Part II; or

(b) proceeding before a board, other than the Commission.

(2) Where a member is represented or assisted by another member pursuant to subsection (1), communications passing in confidence between the two members in relation to the grievance or proceeding are, for the purposes of this Act, privileged as if they were communications passing in professional confidence between the member and the member’s solicitor.

(3) The Commissioner may make rules prescribing

(a) the members or members of any class of members who may not represent or assist another member in any grievance or proceeding referred to in subsection (1); and

(b) the circumstances in which a member may not represent or assist another member in any grievance or proceeding referred to in subsection (1).

17. Subsection 47.2(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(2) Any notice, decision or other document required by this Act to be served by a person or a board on the Commissioner, an appropriate officer or the Commission Chairman is sufficiently served if it is sent by or on behalf of that person or board by prepaid first class mail addressed to the Commissioner, the appropriate officer or the Commission Chairman, as the case may be.

18. Sections 47.4 and 47.5 of the Act are repealed.

19. Section 50 of the Act is replaced by the following:

50. Every person is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction who

(a) on being duly summoned as a witness or otherwise under Part I, II or VII, makes default in attending;

(b) being in attendance as a witness in any proceeding under Part I, II or VII

(i) refuses to take an oath or solemn affirmation required of that person,

(ii) refuses to produce any document or thing under that person’s control and required to be produced by that person, or

(iii) refuses to answer any question that requires an answer;

(c) at any proceeding under Part I, II or VII, uses insulting or threatening language or causes any interference or disturbance; or

(d) prints observations or uses words likely to influence improperly a board of inquiry under Part I, the Commission under Part VII, or witnesses at any proceeding under Part I, II or VII or to bring any such proceeding into disrepute, or in any other manner whatever displays contempt of any such proceeding.

TRANSITIONAL PROVISION

20. Any regulation that was made under section 21 of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act and that is not consistent with that Act, as amended by this Act, ceases to be in force at the coming into force of this Act.

COMING INTO FORCE

21. This Act comes into force 90 days after the day on which it receives royal assent.