Union / Labour Law

Duty of Fair Representation

The Duty of Fair Representation (“DFR”) refers to a trade union’s obligation to provide fair representation to its membership. What a union is obligated to do depends on the facts specific to each case, but generally involves reasonable competence and good faith. If a union fails to meet its DFR, a union member can make a complaint to the relevant labour board and can seek an order forcing the union to do things such as take a grievance forward and pay damages to the union member.

Cautionary Notes

Timelines can be quite short in Labour Law matters. For example:

• Typically a grievance must be filed within a week or two of when the facts giving rise to the grievance were known or ought to have been known by the grievor;
• Typically, the timeline for filing a Duty of Fair Representation complaint against a union is just ninety (90) days from when you knew or ought to have known of the facts giving rise to the DFR. So, if your union drops the ball or fails you in some way, your time to file a complaint or get legal counsel is very short.