West Haldimand General Hospital v. ONA, 2026 CanLII 36848 (ON LA)
Colin Johnston, Arbitrator — April 18, 2026

ONA claimed that two nurses were entitled to premium pay for entire shifts after they did not receive 12 hours off between shifts. The arbitrator dismissed the grievances, holding that the collective agreement supported premium pay only for the limited hours that actually violated the rest-period rule.

Background

The two grievors were full-time emergency department nurses. Each accepted additional hours at the end of a shift and then returned to work the next day without receiving a full 12 hours off.

The Hospital paid premium rates for the overtime hours worked and for the two hours on the following shift that fell within the 12-hour rest period. ONA argued that the nurses were entitled to premium pay for the whole of the next shift.

The relevant local language required at least 12 consecutive hours off between tour changes and provided premium payment for all hours worked where certain scheduling provisions were violated. The parties asked the arbitrator to decide whether the grievors were entitled to premium pay for a limited number of hours or for the whole shifts in question.

Decision

The arbitrator dismissed the grievances. The arbitrator held that a monetary benefit must be grounded in clear and unambiguous language. Article F-9(f) did not clearly entitle nurses to premium pay for an entire next shift.

Reading the agreement as a whole, the arbitrator contrasted Article F-9(f) with provisions that expressly provided premium pay for all hours worked on the next shift. He concluded that “all hours worked” in Article F-9(f) meant all hours worked in violation of the scheduling provision, not all hours on the next scheduled shift.