Issue of disputed MUSA votes resolved

The University administration and the McMaster University Staff Association have resolved the matter of some 93 disputed votes which were cast in March 1999 during a union certification vote on campus. The vote was conducted by the Ontario Labour Relations Board.

In addition, the two parties have reached agreement on how the membership of MUSA is defined. The two agreements were reached this week with the assistance of an officer with the Ontario Labour Relations Board. Formal OLRB hearings to resolve the issues, scheduled for Feb. 2, 3, and 4, are no longer required.

In a Jan. 24 e-mail to the McMaster community, Paul Donoghue, interim vice-president administration, and Barry Diacon, president, McMaster University Staff Association, say that “we have been advised by the OLRB officer that, since the settlement results of the disputed votes will not alter the initial MUSA/union majority, the Board will not count those votes.”

MUSA has applied to the Ontario Labour Relations Board for certification under the Ontario Labour Relations Act.

“Those staff whose status was questioned or in dispute through this OLRB process will be personally informed as to whether they are a member of MUSA or a member of The Management Group (TMG),” state Donoghue and Diacon. “We will work diligently to give this information to the individuals as quickly and confidentially as possible.”