An Edmonton Remand guard at the centre of a wildcat strike two years ago that spread across the province has won his job back.
Todd Ross was fired in June 2013 over a series of emails he sent to managers and a deputy minister after Edmonton’s new remand centre opened.
The emails claimed safety at the new facility was inadequate, as were staffing levels and officer training.
The final straw, however, was an email that included “intemperate language and factual errors,” according to the arbitrator in the case.
Ross was suspended and fired.
However, after a hearing in early 2014, the arbitrator decided that while managers were justified in disciplining Ross, he did not deserve to lose his job.
“Ross was a 28-year employee with a clean record,” Gerald Lucas wrote in his decision released this week. “He had been active in the affairs of the union for many years, and until the move to the NERC was well-regarded.”
Instead, Lucas imposed a six-month suspension without pay and benefits, calculated from June 2013.
Lucas also rejected a claim by the province that Ross induced other correctional peace officers to engage in the strike
“Though Mr. Ross was insolent, insubordinate and untruthful in many of his comments … that conduct is not a sufficient nexus to the ensuing illegal strike.”
The five-day illegal strike started in April 2013 after guards from the Edmonton Remand Centre refused to report for duty over safety concerns.
