Arbitrator overturns firing of Coquitlam care aide, finds employer ‘cobbled together’ allegations

A care aide fired from a Coquitlam long-term care home is entitled to more than a year of lost wages and benefits after a labour arbitrator found her employer had “cobbled together” allegations that did not justify any discipline.

In an Aug. 28 decision, arbitrator Christopher Sullivan upheld a Hospital Employees’ Union grievance filed on behalf of Meriam Dacquel, who was fired from Lakeshore Care Centre in Coquitlam on March 14, 2025.

Sullivan found Select Senior Services Ltd., which employs health-care aides and licensed practical nurses at the 56-bed care home, did not have just cause to discipline Dacquel, let alone terminate her employment.

“It appears the employer cobbled together some thin allegations of wrongdoing that had no real substance, aimed at discharging Dacquel who, perhaps not coincidentally, was a union activist,” Sullivan said.

Lakeshore Care Centre is operated by The Care Group, which contracts its licensed practical nurse and health-care aide workforce to Select Senior Services. Dacquel began working at the Coquitlam facility in January 2019 and remained there through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Her termination letter accused her of failing to comply with the nursing team, harassing nurses and other health professionals, failing to follow care plans, gossiping and contributing to a stressful workplace. It also alleged a former nurse had reported that interactions with Dacquel contributed to the nurse’s resignation.

But Sullivan found those allegations were not supported by the evidence.

One nurse who had raised concerns about Dacquel testified that the care aide “did do her job well,” was “very nice to the residents” and properly performed her job. Asked whether Dacquel was competent, the nurse emphatically agreed.

The arbitrator was particularly critical of the employer’s harassment allegations, finding no formal harassment complaint had ever been filed against Dacquel.

Concerns raised by a dietitian largely involved Dacquel asking questions about residents and their care. The dietitian told the employer the questions had become overwhelming but also acknowledged care staff were essential and sometimes knew more about residents than she did. Sullivan concluded those concerns did not “even come close to any definition of harassment.”

Another allegation involved Dacquel allowing a resident to use a walker instead of the wheelchair called for in the resident’s care plan in February 2025. Sullivan found it was a judgment call made in the circumstances and noted a registered nurse saw the resident walking steadily and did not intervene.

“It may not have been a perfect situation but it was not one warranting any discipline,” he said.

Sullivan was also sharply critical of how Select Senior Services investigated the case.

He found the employer conducted “no investigation of any substance” before firing Dacquel and began formally interviewing witnesses in mid-April 2025, more than a month after her termination.

“I cannot help but observe that it made little, if any sense at all, to have investigated matters a month after discharging the Grievor,” Sullivan said, adding the process appeared designed to establish a “post-facto justification” for the firing.

At the time she was fired, Dacquel had two previous suspensions on her record, both related to her communication style. However, she had received no discipline for 17 months and those earlier suspensions were scheduled to be removed from her record on April 18, 2025 – about a month after she was terminated.

Sullivan also noted Dacquel was active in the union, having served as a bargaining representative, local executive secretary-treasurer and shop steward. He said the employer appeared to have assembled “thin allegations of wrongdoing” before her previous discipline expired.

Ultimately, Sullivan found Dacquel could be a direct communicator whose approach did not work well with everyone, but said her conduct was focused on resident safety and care.

“Without question, the grievor’s manner of communicating could use some adjustment but discipline was not the way to go about such,” he said.

Normally, the finding would result in Dacquel being reinstated and compensated for her losses. However, she told the arbitration she no longer wanted her job back.

Sullivan instead ordered that she be made whole for lost wages and benefits from her March 14, 2025 firing until June 29, 2026, when she indicated she was no longer seeking reinstatement. 

The exact amount of compensation will be determined by the parties.