United Food and Commercial Workers Local 401 applied to represent Dot Transportation drivers. The application initially went to the federal labour board, while the employer argued that provincial labour law applied. A parallel Alberta certification application was adjourned pending a decision on jurisdiction. The Canada Industrial Relations Board later determined the business was provincially regulated, although a judicial review application remained pending. Dot then argued that the delay and employee turnover meant a later Alberta representation vote could no longer measure the union's support.
The Alberta Labour Relations Board refused to dismiss the certification application. Its earlier adjournment arose from a genuine jurisdictional dispute and wasn't the type of consensual adjournment that triggers withdrawal under Rule 77. The Board held that evidence of the union's initial 40% support is assessed as of the application date, while changes in support can be tested by the vote itself. The statutory freeze and delay did not independently justify dismissal. This was a ruling about whether the application could continue, not a decision granting certification or determining the related unfair labour practice complaints. (Reasons, paragraphs 8 to 25.)