Ontario. Office of Mediation

• Office of Mediation

• Ontario. Conciliation Service

• Ontario. Conciliation and Arbitration

• Ontario. Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration

• Ontario. Office, Chief Conciliation Officer

• Ontario. Conciliation Branch

• Ontario. Conciliation Services Branch

• Ontario. Conciliation and Mediation Services Branch

• Ontario. Ontario Mediation and Conciliation Service

• Ontario. Mediation Services

The origins of this office began in 1938 when the Department of Labour appointed a Chief Conciliation Officer who administered conciliation services. The unit under the management of this officer was responsible for conciliation, mediation and arbitration of industrial disputes within the province, and was also responsible for the certification of bargaining agencies.

In the following years the unit responsible for conciliation services was known by a variety of names. In the late 1930s and in the 1940s the unit was known by the following names: Conciliation Service; Conciliation and Arbitration; and Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration. By the 1950s the unit was once again called Conciliation Services and then the Office of the Chief Conciliation Officer by the early 1960s.

By the late 1960s the unit had achieved branch status and at first was called the Conciliation Branch, later the Conciliation Services Branch and in 1969-70 the name was again changed to the Conciliation and Mediation Services Branch.

Although the name underwent many changes, the functions of this unit/branch remained primarily the provision of conciliation and mediation services for disputes arising between employees and employers in the negotiation of collective agreements. The process for the provision of these services was as follows. Applications for conciliation services were filed either by the trade union, the employer or by both, with the Ontario Labour Relations Board, created in 1944 to replace the Labour Court. When the request for conciliation services was granted, a two-level conciliation procedure followed. At the first level, a conciliation officer negotiated to effect a collective agreement between the parties. If these efforts failed, the conciliation proceeded to the next level and a conciliation board, consisting of a representative from both parties and a chairman, was established. Conciliation must have been completed before a lawful strike could begin. If the preceeding conciliation efforts both failed to reach a settlement, a strike or lockout could lawfully take place. At this stage conciliation services were still offered by the branch and a mediator could be appointed.

This branch underwent more name changes in later years. In 1977, it was known as Ontario Mediation and Conciliation Service. From 1988-89 to 2002 conciliation services were offered under the name of Office of Mediation, and in 2003 the name became Mediation Services.

Although the name at the present time stresses mediation, the goals of this office still are to foster harmonious labour relations by promoting peaceful settlements of collective bargaining disputes through conciliation and mediation.

The Office of Mediation provides conciliation and mediation services in order to assist employers and trade unions negotiate collective agreements if they themselves have bargained unsuccessfully. Parties in a labour dispute must use the government's conciliation services before resorting to strikes or lockouts. The service also provides programs and assistance to help the parties in improving their relationship including best practices advice on labour-management relationships.

RAD: Rules for Archival Description, 2nd edn (2008)

2026-11-16: migrated to AtoM

RG 7 inventory; Department of Labour Annual Reports; Ministry of Labour Annual Reports; Ontario Government Directory of Services

Archivist(s):
Stabile