Case # 2010-029

Class A reserve service, Pay

Case Summary

F&R Date: 2010-07-07

The grievor, a part-time Class “A” reservist working as the Battalion Chaplain, filed a grievance concerning retroactive financial compensation for work performed while on Class “A” service, as well as the absence of designated non-working days. He contended that he was directed by his chain of command (CoC) to carry a Blackberry (BB) and encouraged to monitor his emails on a regular basis, and while he recognized this requirement was an inherent part of his duties as Chaplain, he also expected to be remunerated accordingly. As redress, the grievor requested that he be compensated two days pay for every seven day on duty call for monitoring his BB on non-working days.

Although a CANFORGEN message was later promulgated which enabled a Class “A” reservist to accumulate short periods of work per day, the grievor rejected an informal resolution proposal that was offered, arguing that the issue of proper compensation for work performed by Class “A” reservists had not been properly addressed in the proposal.

The initial authority (IA), the Acting Director General Compensation and Benefits, partially granted the grievance, acknowledging that the grievor should be compensated with pay for being required to perform duties on non-working days. However, the IA also informed the grievor that he could not grant the redress sought for "on-call" pay, because he had no authority to grant a benefit that had not been approved by the Treasury Board.

Although the grievor had no record of email messages or telephone calls he responded to from the date he received the BB, the Board found that he was entitled to be compensated in the form of pay for the days or half days he had spent monitoring his BB and receiving and responding to messages, as mandated by his CoC. Consequently, the Board recommended that this aspect of the grievance be upheld.

On the issue of "on-call" pay for Class "A" reservists, the Board observed there was no provision in the Canadian Forces (CF) pay policy and no authority in the CF regulations for the recording and submission of claims for "on-call" pay by members on Class "A" service. The Board found the grievor had no entitlement under the current policy for "on-call" pay. The Board therefore recommended that this aspect of the grievance be denied.

In expressing its view on the policy, the Board indicated it was not convinced by the arguments advanced by the grievor that there should be a policy change in the relevant area. The Board noted that it was open to the grievor to complain by grieving about policy provisions. Although the Board made no finding regarding the appropriateness of the relevant policy, the Board recommended that CF authorities review its policy relating to "on-call" pay.

CDS Decision Summary

CDS Decision Date: 2010-10-26

The CDS agreed with the Board's findings and its recommendation to partially uphold the grievance. Although the CDS concluded that there was no provision covering ''on-call'' pay for reservists, he did not address the Board's recommendation that CF authorities review its policy concerning this topic.