A strong grasp of principles of collective agreement interpretation is essential for labour relations professionals, in grievance handling, collective bargaining, pursuing arbitration, and more. Build your foundation or brush up on the latest through this new installment in Lancaster’s Workplace Essentials webinar series, which will address questions including:

1. What are the most commonly applied rules of collective agreement interpretation?
   
   
2. What is the difference between a “plain meaning” and a “purposive” approach?
   
   
3. How are documents such as memoranda of settlement, supplementary agreements, schedules, letters of intent or understanding, and amendments interpreted in relation to the main text of the collective agreement?
   
   
4. What is the “residual rights” theory of management rights? Is this approach still adopted in arbitral caselaw today? Does it depend on whether there is a management rights clause in the collective agreement, and on the language of that clause?
   
   
5. What are “implied terms” and how do they affect the interpretation of the express language of the contract? Is language explicitly outlining that an employer must exercise management rights fairly and reasonably required in order to enforce such an obligation, or is the duty implied?
   
   
6. How do arbitrators reconcile negotiated contract language and the contrary provisions of employment-related statutes (e.g. human rights and employment standards legislation)?
   
   
7. How is the interpretation and administration of collective agreements affected by estoppel?
   
   
8. When is extrinsic evidence, such as negotiating history and past practice admissible? How does the “ambiguity” approach differ from the “contextual” approach as outlined by the Supreme Court of Canada? How has the “contextual” approach changed the practice of arbitrators?