Leave it to Grievor: LCBOvs. the little fat wino
aka the great grievance of 2001..see the settlement
Ask anyone about how well I fit LCBO. In fact two of the highest compliments I ever received came from LCBO District Managers. They weren't intended as compliments, however. The first was "Never have I seen a worse waste of talent" and the second was "Larry just doesn't fit in here." I hold both insults dear to my heart, putting them in the same league as Dennis McDermott telling me that I "reminded him of himself".
Anyway, on to the job at hand.
The story leading up to the reasons for this grievance are located here.
The actual grievance referred to the letter following:
This two-page document is an attachment to Complaint and Grievance Form, Ontario Liquor Boards Employees Union, numbered 00774. It is an integral part of the form.
In April Acting District Manager Paul Forsyth called me at work and asked me where I lived. After giving this information I replied that the only reason he could want to know this was that he was thinking of transferring me to the Bobcaygeon outlet. I refused to go as the travel was extensive. Very shortly thereafter Ann Laurean of the same store I am in was moved to Bobcaygeon, a move that has caused much bitterness among various employees.
In late May or early June, by telephone, District Manager Paul Forsyth accused me of writing letters on the behalf of other employees. This was something he said that I should not do, and he knew it was me because the letters had the same format, and mis-spelled his name. I replied that this is a free country, and not only did I feel that I was within my rights assisting fellow employees I was seriously considering running for union office this year so that I could help other employees as well. I believe that Mr. Forsyth holds thiis against me. In fact, at this point I am seriously considering running for election as a zone steward so that I can help others in the district. And as a Canadian citizen I will write whatever letters I choose and answer to my own conscience and the laws of this country.
On June 7 I was on what I was sure was an approved leave of absence without pay. I found out by calling the store on an unrelated matter that Mr. Forsyth had ordered the store to file this as vacation, without notifying me of the change. As the leave had been approved by former Manager Brian Simmons and confirmed by then manager Rick Barley I called Mr. Forsyth to find out what was happening. An acrimonious phone call was followed without verbal warning by a letter delivered to my wife (not to me) just before we were leaving for the weekend. A copy of Mr. Forsyth's letter and my reply are included with this document and form an integral part of form 00774. This reply details my arguments in sufficient form.
The reason I had been seeking time off without pay was to give myself some peace of mind as I am certainly no longer a happy employee of the LCBO. This (in my opinion vindictive) disruption of and interference in my life has increased the stress levels to the point where I am unsure what legal actions I may take in future. I certainly reserve all legal rights I may have. I believe that this was a "Punitive" retaliation for the letter-writing, my willingness to assist fellow employees with their problems, my refusal to travel to Bobcaygeon on a daily basis and my indication that I was considering running for union office in this district. In short, I believe the incident as detailed in the attached letters was "payback" for my "attitude". To me, this type of behaviour is unseemly in a person in a position of authority in the public service. Such incidents are, in my opinion, one of the major reasons that the LCBO receives such dismal approval ratings from its employees.
I approached Mr. Forsyth originally in January when he was appointed as Acting District Manager about leave of absence without pay. He promised me the details about Leave of Absence without Pay. He told me that the leave was approved and then tried to recall it after it had been started. he was the expert and I was seeking guidance. In my reply to his letter of June 7th I formally asked for details, in writing, of the parameters for such leave. I have yet to receive any reply.
It was and is my intention to periodically take such leave when it does not interfere with LCBO operations. I need the time away, and the LCBO will save money by replacing me with lower-paid employees (or with fewer hours or both). Also, my "attitude" will certainly improve with more time away. It was never my intention to cause any disruption nor is it my intention to disrupt store operations in the future. But there are surely many times when my personal presence is not required, and I am willing to sacrifice part of my pay to achieve this.
In summary, I believe that this incident was spiteful and intended to intimidate, thus in contravention of article 2.1(a). Further this may fall under the Human Rights / Workplace Harassment Prevention policies of the LCBO.
Within one week of my statement that I was carrying this to the next level of the grievance procedure, I heard through the grapevine (from multiple sources in other stores) that I was being transferred to Peterborough. In the past I have told Mr. Forsyth that I have no desire ever to work in the stores in Peterborough again as they are too busy and I have physical limitations (arthritis pain and scarred lungs) which make busier locations more difficult to work in. My working in the Omemee outlet was in many ways an accomodation of my handicaps. Thus this complaint may also fall under section 2.1 (b) of the contract.
SETTLEMENT DESIRED:
- to have the vacation / leave without pay credits reversed to show June 4, 5, 7, 8 and 12 as "O" with the appropriate deduction removed 50% from each of the next two paycheques following settlement of this grievance. To have Friday June 9 shown as 1/2 "O" and 1/2 "10" "on duty" to reflect the time that I was foced to spend replying to Mr. Forsyth's letter of June 7th.
- to have kilometrage paid from my house to Store # 343 and return as necessitated by delivering the requested letter to the union representative at short notice.
- to have a letter of apology issued by Mr. Forsyth stating the errors he made in this instance and issuing a promise to refrain from any undue personal interference or unnecessary personal contact in future with a copy to both myself and the union.
- to have a detailed written process for obtaining unpaid leave of absence provided to me by competent authority so that it can be arranged as convenient to both myself and the LCBO in future.
- to have the current transfer into the Peterborough store reversed and have myself returned to the Omemee outlet
- to have allowance made for time spent at home filling out these documents, which I feel are LCBO business
Sincerely,
signed
Larry Paterson
CSR/Clerk IV
Store # 281 Omemee
ATTACHMENT TO COMPLAINT AND GRIEVANCE FORM, OLBEU 00774 JUNE 17 01
see the settlement, the main portion of which, to me, is clause 8 in which LCBO agrees that I can publish all this information, and make fair comment. It would be scary to think of how much money the LCBO spent trying to ride me. Wonder how much they spend on treating other employees in the same manner?