Court Upholds Just Cause Termination For Nurse Who Bites

In what is one of the last Alberta labour arbitration awards to be judicially reviewed by the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench (the "Court"), the just cause dismissal of a nurse for biting a patient was upheld.

In October 2014, Alberta Health Services ("AHS") terminated a Licensed Practical Nurse ("LPN") for biting a patient severely enough to cause physical harm to the patient. The patient was an 80 year old man that had been admitted to the stroke unit. The LPN's termination from employment was grieved by her union, the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (the "Union"). Notably, the fact that the bite occurred was admitted by the LPN, however the Union argued that the LPN bit the patient in self-defence.