Winkler on Labour Arbitration and Conflict Resolution

The Ontario Court of Appeal just uploaded a speech by Chief Justice Winkler on labour arbitration and conflict resolution, although it was initially presented at Queen’s University on November 30, 2010.

Justice Winkler’s views on labour law reform have been of considerable interest, especially considering his holding in Fraser v. Ontario, overturned this year by the Supreme Court of Canada.

In this speech, Justice Winkler provides four recommendations for labour law reform:

1. Shorten grievance procedures
2. Conduct discovery and productions within grievances, and not arbitration
3. Select arbitrators who are more immediately available
4. Conduct hearings with proportionality