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The Alberta Labour Relations Board is the independent and impartial tribunal responsible for the day-to-day interpretation and application of Alberta's labour laws. It processes applications and holds hearings. The Board actively encourages dispute resolution, employs officers for investigations and makes major policy decisions. There are Board offices in both Edmonton and Calgary.
The Labour Relations Code encourages parties to settle their disputes through honest and open communication. The Board offers informal settlement options to the parties, but it also has inquiry and hearing powers to make binding rulings whenever necessary.
The Board consists of a Chair, four full-time Vice-Chairs, four part-time Vice-Chairs, and approximately 34 part-time members. The members are representative of both labour and management, and appointed by the Lieutenant-Governor in Council for specified terms.
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How
the Board Operates
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The Labour
Relations Board receives, investigates and decides applications
for certification from trade unions as well as applications
to vary or revoke certificates previously issued. It
also conducts representation and proposal votes, and
supervises strike and lockout votes. The Board resolves
disputes about the operation of the Labour Relations
Code or the collective bargaining process.
The Board has the power to decide whether a strike or
lockout in progress is unlawful and, if necessary, order
that it cease. The Board can regulate picketing by ensuring
that the restrictions imposed by the Code are enforced,
and by balancing the interests of those engaged in lawful
picketing activity and the interests of other parties
affected by the picketing.
The Code gives the Board the authority to make many
other determinations, such as whether a person is an
employee or whether a collective agreement has been
entered into (Section 12(2)). In the provincial
public sector, the Public Service Employee Relations
Act gives the Board similar powers.
The Board
publishes Information Bulletins
which give information about Board processes and specific
applications.
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Alberta's Labour Laws
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The Board administers two main pieces of labour relations legislation – the Labour Relations Code and the Public Service Employee Relations Act.
These Acts apply to most unionized employees in the province but exclude employers and employees in domestic work and in industries falling under federal jurisdiction, such as airlines, railways, interprovincial trucking and shipping, and telecommunications. Self-employed workers are not covered by the Code. Some other employees in Alberta have their labour relations governed by other Acts which the Board administers in part or total, such as the Post-secondary Learning Act, the Police Officers Collective Bargaining Act and the Public Education Collective Bargaining Act.
The Code also excludes people who, in the Board’s view, exercise managerial functions or who are employed in a confidential capacity in matters related to labour relations. It does not apply to doctors, dentists, architects, engineers and lawyers while they are employed in their professional capacities.
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Test Vote Document |
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