Comment on Jacmain v. Attorney General of Canada and the P.S.S.R. Board

The recent Supreme Court of Canada decision in Jacmain v. A. G. of Can. and the P.S.S.R. Board' partly clarifies the rights and "protections" accorded a federal government probationary worker upon dismissal. Regretably, however, with reference to the role of a grievance adjudicator (a federal tribunal) in such matters, and even more so with reference to the role of the courts in "supervising" the jurisdictional findings of such a tribunal, the Jacmain decision is less instructive. The facts of the case are relatively complex. Jacmain had been an employee with the Department of National Revenue prior to entering a competition with the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages. In May 1973 he was appointed to the Complaints Branch of that Office but about nine months later he was notified in writing by the Commissioner of Official Languages that he would be rejected during his probationary period pursuant to the provisions of the Public Service Employment Act.