Air Canada fired a station attendant — a position requiring heavy lifting — after he failed to disclose a pre-existing chronic back pain condition during the hiring process.
Now, a grievance filed on his behalf by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) District 140 has been dismissed by an arbitration tribunal.
The Union contended the worker was unaware of the severity of his condition at the time of his employment and had discovered its chronic nature only after coming on the payroll.
Historical medical records, however, painted a different picture. The worker had held the same position between April 2015 and November 2018 and was rehired in April 2022. The job required lifting heavy objects, unaided and repetitively, of weights up to 70 pounds; walking long distances; and pushing and pulling heavy objects and bending in order to enter confined spaces.
A medical assessment with the company’s Occupational Health Services (OHS) prior to his rehiring in 2022 saw him answering “No” to questions regarding any pre-existing conditions that might impact his work. Yet, only a month later, he requested light duties due to a diagnosis of disc herniations, a form of chronic back pain.
Further inquiry by Air Canada revealed that he had consulted with medical professionals for back pain as early as October 2020. Records showed that he had undergone chiropractic treatments, physiotherapy, and even received a diagnosis of Bertolotti’s syndrome, a condition known to cause chronic back pain.
During the Tribunal hearings, inconsistencies in his statements further weakened his position. While he claimed not to have sought physiotherapy for his back pain, medical notes provided by his physician contradicted his claims.
The Tribunal, after a thorough examination of the evidence and testimonies, concluded he had indeed withheld essential medical information during the hiring process. They determined that Air Canada’s consent to hire him had been “vitiated” due to the non-disclosure, leading to the decision to dismiss the grievance filed on his behalf.
For more information, see International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 140 (IAMAW) v Air Canada, 2023 CanLII 92382 (CA LA)
