gordon forbes, b.ed.

​senior advisor

gordon's Background:

Gordon acts as a special advisor to Ms. Forbes-MacFarlane.  He is a senior Human Resources and Labour Relations professional with extensive experience and expertise in the areas of heavy manufacturing, mining, retail/distribution and more recently in the health care industry. Gordon is experienced in all facets of HR including advisory services, labour and employee relations, compensation, pension and benefits, occupational health & safety, recruitment, and payroll.  Most recently, he was a Director of Human Resources & Labour Relations with a large international mining, manufacturing, and retail distribution company.  In this role, he provided leadership and oversight to a team of HR professionals located across Canada and the United States.

Gordon is an expert in Labour Relations.  He has worked in both Canada and the United States and has extensive employment and labour law experience in both countries. He has served as Chief Spokesperson for numerous collective bargaining proceedings across North America. He has also been involved in many grievance and arbitrations proceedings, Human Rights tribunals and hearings, and workplace harassment investigations and interventions in both countries.  

In addition, Gordon has developed extensive training materials on a wide variety of topics including collective bargaining, strike contingency planning, managing union drives, and first collective agreements.  He has also written and implemented numerous corporate policies in both Canada and the United States on a variety of topics such as harassment, drug and alcohol, and progressive discipline.    

Education:

  • University of Saskatchewan, B.Ed.
  • Queen's University, Industrial Relations Certificate
  • Journeyman Electrician, Red Seal
  • Occupational Health & Safety (AB, SK)
    Hay Compensation System
  • Labour Negotiating (Getting to Yes)
  • Community Outreach and Crisis Communication
  • ​Workplace Harassment and Investigations

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