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Originally Posted by Siri
To Jared's point, violation can result in open publication of their name as well as suspension of union services. The fine itself is up to $500/day.  |
Quote:
Originally Posted by Akash Rastogi
So sad that they can do this. I wish these teams and their teachers good luck.
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If an employer retaliated against an employee with a $500 fine, would a union stand for it? The union seems to have lost its sense of purpose, in its zeal to win.
The fine is likely a bluff calculated to intimidate. The union can bill the member whatever it wants, but if the member won't pay, the union would have to sue them for breach of contract—which I can't see going well for the union. (Do they even have a membership agreement that can be enforced contractually? Not to mention the public relations issues that the trial would present.) Kicking the member out might be problematic as well; I'm not sure if the union's charter or membership agreement permits that. Suspension of services and outing them are probably legal, as long as they don't defame the member in doing so.
In fact, while the union has probably kept the threat of a fine relatively quiet in the past, openly announcing it was perhaps the biggest gift they could give to the Ontario government. Now the government can say that it's invoking the bill 115 provisions in order to prevent the union from punishing teachers who are committed to the students' extracurriculars. If there's anything that can soften the public's justifiably negative opinion of bill 115, it's that.