Grievance Case Summary - G-348

In 1999, the Grievor was a member of the United Nations civil police ("CIVPOL") on mission to Kosovo. During the 1999 Christmas season, the Grievor was to join his family in Greece. Before making airline reservations for the family reunion, the Grievor's wife talked to an RCMP representative, who informed her that the RCMP would cover the full cost of the airline tickets.

When the Grievor submitted his claim, he only received partial reimbursement because, in light of the circumstances, the directive in effect did not allow for reimbursement of the full amount.

The Level I Adjudicator did not rule on the merits of the grievance, because he found that the grievance was inadmissible. In his opinion, the Grievor had not respected the time limit set out in the Act for filing a grievance.

After the Grievor was informed that he would only receive a partial reimbursement for the cost of the airline tickets for the family reunion, the Grievor asked that the decision be reviewed and he submitted additional information. The Committee concluded that the 30-day time limit is calculated from the date of the decision under review, not from the date of the first decision. When he reviewed the decision, the RCMP representative considered the additional information submitted by the Grievor. If the Commissioner is of the opinion that the Grievor did not respect the time limit set out in subsection 31(2) of the Act, the Committee recommends that he use his discretionary authority under subsection 47.4(1) of the Act in order to retroactively extend the time limit for presenting a grievance.

As regards the merits, the Committee concluded that it would be in the public interest to apply the principle of estoppel in the present case since the Grievor and his wife followed the advice of the RCMP representative.

The grievance should be allowed.

The Commissioner has rendered his decision in this matter, as summarized by his office:

[TRANSLATION] The Commissioner agreed with the ERC and found that the grievance was only presented when the choice of the airport, for calculating the reimbursement for airline tickets, was confirmed. This confirmation was in response to the submission of new information. As for the date the grievance was submitted, the circumstances and the Grievor's situation at the time he presented his grievance justified giving him the benefit of the doubt and accepting the date the document was signed as the date of submission. The 30-day time limit for presenting the grievance was therefore respected.

As for the reimbursement for airline tickets, the Commissioner rejected the ERC's recommendation to apply the principle of estoppel. The Grievor had to ensure that the information obtained during the information session was indeed consistent with current policies. The Commissioner did, however, agree to provide the Grievor with an ex gratia payment. Accordingly, the Commissioner allowed the grievance and ordered a reimbursement of $1,513.92.