An employee who filed a written complaint, falsely alleging that his supervisor deliberately ran into him with a sharp blow from his shoulder, was dismissed for cause, an arbitrator has held.
Unfortunately for the employee, video evidence showed his allegation to be false.
The employee, a warehouse worker, had seven years of service and had received two prior suspensions in the previous twelve-month period.
The supervisor denied the allegation, and no witnesses supported the employee’s version of events. Video evidence showed the corridor at the time when, according to the employee, he was assaulted. The video showed that no such assault took place.
The arbitrator held that the evidence was overwhelmingly against the employee’s account of what had occurred. In particular, the video showed that there was no contact. The employee had falsified the allegation against his supervisor. This was very serious, as the allegation was that the supervisor had committed assault. That allegation, if accepted, “could have extremely negative consequences” for the supervisor including possible criminal charges. The allegation was calculated to harm the supervisor. The making of the allegation was so serious as to “undermine the possibility of any ongoing employment relationship”.
As such, the employee was dismissed for just cause.
DB Ontario Inc. v United Steelworkers, Local 3327, 2014 CanLII 77057 (ON LA)
For more information, visit our Occupational Health & Safety Law blog at www.occupationalhealthandsafetylaw.com
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