Employer did not infringe on religious requirement: Arbitration board
An Ontario arbitration board dismissed Harvey Kaduri’s grievance alleging discrimination.
Kaduri — a full-time teacher at Seneca College — filed a grievance against the institution. Through his union, the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) Local 560, Kaduri alleged the college discriminated against him on the basis of creed.
Kaduri is Jewish, and as part of his commitment to his faith he is required to give back to his community. He felt he could best fulfill this commitment by teaching technology part-time at the only Jewish high school in Toronto.
The employer accommodated his morning teaching schedule at the high school by scheduling all of his college classes after 1 p.m.
In June 2012, however, the employer implemented a new automated scheduling system. Under the new system classes would be scheduled automatically according to the demand for particular courses and the availability of teachers.
Accommodations would be made for medical disabilities but the employer made no indication it would accommodate religious requirements.
While the implementation of the new scheduling system meant the employer could no longer commit to accommodating Kaduri’s request to only teach afternoon classes, it continued to do so.
Kaduri was informed, however, that his schedule could not be accommodated for the 2014-2015 academic year. The union filed a grievance, claiming the employer’s refusal to continue accommodating Kaduri constituted a failure to accommodate his religious beliefs and therefore constitutes discrimination on the basis of creed.
The employer argued the union failed to establish a prima facie case that it was discriminating against him. The employer asserted Kaduri was required to establish he is required by his religious belief to maintain employment at the high school. That is, Kaduri needed to prove his religion required him to maintain a second position at the high school in exchange for wages.
The employer argued Kaduri did not prove this point and in fact claimed simply that he is required by his religion to "give back" to his community. The employer put forth it cannot be forced to accommodate his particular choice of how to fulfill that requirement.
The employer’s inability to accommodate his second position at the high school in no way infringes on Kaduri’s ability to give back to his community and therefore no discrimination based on creed took place, the employer said.
Counsel for the union argued that if Kaduri sincerely believes he is required by his religious beliefs to give back to the community through his role at the high school, that practice must be accommodated.
"The difficulty with the union’s position is that it is not asserted that it is the grievor’s sincerely held belief that he is required to teach at (the high school) on a part time basis in exchange for wages," the arbitration board said in its ruling. "Rather, that is a choice he has made as the means of fulfilling his requirement to give back to his community. Surely there are many ways in which the grievor could fulfill his obligation to give back to his community."
The arbitration board — made up of chair Norm Jesin, employee nominee Carla Zabek and union nominee Pamela Munt-Madill — went on to say it is not Kaduri’s requirement to give back that is being infringed, but his particular choice of how to fulfill it.
"This does not constitute an infringement of a religious requirement in our view and therefore the particulars, even if accepted, do not constitute discrimination on the basis of creed."
The grievance was dismissed.
Reference: Seneca College and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union Local 560. Arbitration board: Norm Jesin, chair; Carla Zabek, employer nominee; Pamela Munt-Madill, union nominee. Kathryn J. Bird for the employer, Jesse Isaac Gutman for the union. July 23, 2014.
