Who Makes Decisions About Collective Agreement Entitlements?

The collective agreement aims to encompass all members of a bargaining unit and ensure they receive fair provisions. Sometimes, clauses within the agreement require decision making and may necessitate an arbitrator to interpret the language. These clauses can cause issues, especially if they lead to conflicts among members of the same bargaining unit by limiting their entitlements under the agreement. 

In a school setting, the principal holds a significant level of responsibility, as they oversee the school’s operation. In general, or in unionized environments, those in high-responsibility roles typically make decisions about their employees’ working conditions, rather than just implementing relevant policies. However, such a “manager” role is not consistent with the collegial environment that should be promoted in Alberta schools. In a school setting, school leaders (including principals, vice-principals, and assistant principals) can be seen as having a similar role since they oversee the school’s operations. Nevertheless, school leaders are teachers’ colleagues, not their managers.

While school leaders play a key role in guiding decisions about their schools, being the final decision maker can put them in a tough position, potentially causing conflicts with other bargaining unit members because of their role as agents of the division.

A common area where this occurs is with leaves of absence. Inclement weather language is a specific example. It is not uncommon to find language that states “in the opinion of the teacher” or “after making reasonable efforts” in clauses that require members to assess their situation and make decisions. While some language grants full autonomy to the teacher, other clauses specify that the final decision rests with someone else.

While the language of the collective agreement will specify who makes the decision on an entitlement, as previously mentioned, it should not have bargaining unit members making sole entitlement decisions for other members of the same bargaining unit. Even in cases where the language delegates authority, that delegation should not place a school leader in the role of manager and sole decision maker. 

The Association has an arbitration award from an Edmonton Public grievance regarding leave of absence decisions that supports this stance. The main responsibility of a school leader should be to inform the decision, not to act as the final authority on entitlement. However, some agreements include language that gives the administrator a more prominent decision-making role than is ideal.

If the language clearly states that the decision maker is the superintendent or other central office personnel, but they have arbitrarily assigned that responsibility to an administrator, this process should be challenged. If the language identifies the “Superintendent or designate” as the decision-maker and an administrator has been appointed as the final decider, the Edmonton Public arbitration decision should be submitted to the employer, and efforts should be made to resolve the issue based on the award. When the language explicitly lists the administrator as the decision maker, we must adhere to that language until it can be negotiated out of the collective agreement. 

​No matter who the decision maker is, they act as an agent of the division and must make decisions reasonably. The grievance-arbitration process is available to address any clause in the collective agreement where a breach is believed to have occurred, regardless of who made the decision.

WORTH SHARING

Collective agreement language details entitlements and provisions for teachers. Whenever possible and when the language requires, the employer should make decisions. School leaders should inform staff of their decisions but should not be responsible for final decisions on entitlements for colleagues because colleagues are not managers. Members with concerns should contact Teacher Employment Membership Support at 1-800-232-7208. 

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