How do I organize my workplace?

How do I organize my workplace?

Becoming unionized is a majority decision

When employees in a workplace express interest in joining a union, union representatives will meet and discuss the process with them.

The Ontario Labour Relations Act states that if at least 40 per cent of the employees sign union membership cards, the union can submit an application for certification to the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB). The OLRB holds a secret ballot vote at the workplace one week later.

The union is successful if 50 per cent plus one of the employees who cast a ballot vote in favour of the union. The union then becomes certified to represent that employee group, or bargaining unit, and will begin the process of negotiating a first collective agreement, or contract.

Your decision is private

The law protects the secrecy of the card signer and the vote.

Your employer will not know whether or not you have signed a membership card.

As well, the OLRB vote is a secret ballot, like provincial and federal elections. A Labour Board officer conducts the vote, and ensures that there is no interference or intimidation from either the union or the employer.

You can’t be fired for joining a union

The law gives you the right to join and be represented by a union.

An employer may not change the way it treats an employee because you engage in union activity. This means your employer cannot cut your hours of work, discipline you or fire you, or discriminate against you in any other way because you decide to join the union. Employers are, however, permitted to run their business as they have in the past.

ONA Dues

The services that ONA provides are funded by the dues that members pay.

Dues are not deducted until your collective agreement is signed. Thereafter they are paid once a month through payroll deductions.

Most of your dues are tax deductible.

ONA members decide at our biennial conventions on the dues structure, the amount of dues and how they are spent. More information on dues is available here.

ONA represents its members interests in the workplace

ONA negotiates collective agreements and makes sure the provisions of those agreements are adhered to.

A collective agreement sets out the rights and responsibilities of the employer and of the employees. It contains clauses that deal with such things as wages, benefits, working conditions and professional responsibility.

ONA negotiates a province-wide (central) collective agreement for most of its hospital-based RNs. It also negotiates a central agreement for members in nursing homes and some homes for the aged. In addition, local bargaining units negotiate agreements that supplement the central agreements and address such issues as scheduling.

ONA is responsible for enforcing the collective agreements it bargains. A member who believes that she or he has been treated unfairly, and that the provisions of the collective agreement have not been met, may file a grievance. ONA staff and locally elected leaders represent members in their dealings with the employer. If a grievance cannot be solved, ONA may represent members at arbitration. ONA also represent its members before the Ontario Labour Relations Board.