The Manitoba Labour Board has ruled that Vale Inco's Newfoundland & Labrador Limited Voisey's Bay operation is not "another employer" under the Labour Relations Act for the purposes of shipping nickel concentrate to Thompson to be processed by USW Local 6166 members.
Last December the local's executive committee made a decision, says President Murray Nychyporuk in a May 10 message to members, to invoke Section 15(a) of the Manitoba Labour Relations Act, which would give the union the right to refuse "to perform work which would facilitate the operation of another employer who is in a labour dispute."
The product was Voisey's Bay nickel concentrate, which was being trucked from Vale Inco's struck Ontario Operations in Sudbury to Thompson's Manitoba Operations.
The operative phrase was "another employer," which USW Local 6166 contended Vale Inco's Newfoundland and Labrador operation at Voisey's Bay was within the meaning of the Labour Relations Act.
While the company did not accept the union's position, they agreed at the time, says Nychyporuk, "to comply under protest, with our interpretation of 'another employer.'"
More recently, however, Nychyporuk says, Vale Inco has contended Voisey's Bay "is the same employer as the Thompson Manitoba Division with regards to the Act. Vale Inco wishes to process concentrate from other Canadian operations."
Nychyporuk says, "Our position was to seek a ruling from the Labour Board in pursuit of not putting our members at risk of discipline or discharge for refusing to facilitate the production of 'struck product' and not subjecting our local to loss of production lawsuits."
Nychyporuk went onto say: "Two weeks ago, we filed an application to the Labour Board for the interpretation of the phrase 'another employer.'"
In an oral ruling May 10, W.D. Hamilton, chairperson of the Manitoba Labour Board, found Vale Inco Newfoundland & Labrador Limited is not "another employer for the purpose of Section 15(1) of the Labour Relations Act.
"Local 6166 will be requesting the board to furnish written reasons for their decision," Nychyporuk says. "We are not happy with the ruling and in need of some clarity, as to the basis of the ruling."
David Markham, manager of corporate affairs for Vale Inco's Manitoba Operations, said May 17: "We have no comment other than to say that we feel that we have an excellent working relationship with Local 6166 and that we are committed to resolving our differences in a respectful manner. Any discussion of these differences will take place as they always do - between the company and union."
