Automotive News Canada - April 2024 - 18

18
* APRIL 2024
VW dealership cleared of squeak
By TODD HUMBER
T ORONTO CORRESPONDENT
THE CIVIL RESOLUTION
Tribunal of British Columbia
has dismissed a lawsuit
against Journey Volkswagen of
Coquitlam, B.C., by an unsatisfied
customer.
Rockwood Electric sued the
dealership after it failed to fix
a squeaking sound on its vehicle.
The court case did not specify
the year or the model.
Rockwood sought $1,439.23,
the cost of a service visit
charged by the dealership.
Journey Volkswagen
said Rockwood Electric
reported a noise from the
transmission, but a service technician
and a service adviser took
the vehicle for a road test with the
customer and only heard " normal
engine and driveline noises. "
Upon returning, it was found
that the vehicle was overdue for
factory-recommended service. The
customer was told that service
was required, but the dealership
said it did not make any promises
the work would fix the noise.
Journey Volkswagen charged
the customer for front and rear
differential service, brake fluid
flush, automatic transmission
fluid replacement and transfer-case
service. Neither the work
order nor the invoice mentioned
diagnosing or fixing the noise.
The customer heard the squeaking
noise as they drove away and
received no reply from the dealership
when contacted. Rockwood
Electric took the vehicle to
another shop that determined a
wheel bearing caused the noise,
charging $922.02 for the repair.
The tribunal's Feb. 28 ruling
said it was " undisputed " that
Journey Volkswagen completed
the service work for which it had
charged and there was no indication
it was deficient. The ruling
also said the shop that fixed
the wheel bearing did not provide
expert evidence that Journey's
work was deficient or fell below a
reasonably competent standard.
UNION WINS DISPUTE OVER
TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION DAY
TWO TOYOTA DEALERSHIPS
in British Columbia breached
their collective agreements by
not recognizing the National Day
for Truth and Reconciliation as a
statutory holiday, an arbitrator
has ruled.
Westminster Toyota
and Jim Pattison Toyota
faced a grievance from the
International Association of
Machinists and Aerospace
Workers (IAMAW) after
they refused to recognize the holiday
in 2022.
The collective agreement stated
that employees would receive 11
statutory holidays and " any other
day proclaimed by the provincial
or federal government when the
company is forced by legislation
to close down its operation. "
Despite losing a grievance over
observance of the holiday in 2021,
the dealerships decided to designate
the holiday, Sept. 30, 2022, as
a regular workday. This decision
arose in the wake of a new arbitration
ruling involving the IAMAW
and Collins Manufacturing, which
had identical contract language
but did not result in recognition of
the holiday.
Arbitrator John. B. Hall shot
down this argument in his Feb.
12 ruling, saying the issue of the
holiday had already been settled
between IAMAW and the dealerships,
agreeing with the union
that it was equivalent to a " second
kick at the can. "
The IAMAW also sought $30,000
in punitive damages from the
dealerships. The arbitrator rejected
the claim, noting it was not
" egregious " for the employers to
think the new ruling could apply
to them and there was no badfaith
conduct on their part.
NO DISCRIMINATION FOUND
IN DISMISSAL OF SHUTTLE DRIVER
THE HUMAN RIGHTS
Tribunal of Ontario dismissed a
case by an 80-year-old shuttle driver
who alleged discrimination
based on age and disability after
his employment was terminated.
Cyril Nell was employed by
Parkway Plymouth-Chrysler
in Mississauga, Ont., part of
the Car Nation Canada group
of dealerships. In August 2017,
Parkway was bought by Go Auto
Dealerships, and, pursuant to the
purchase agreement, staff became
employees of the new Go Dodge
Mississauga.
Nell's complaint was rooted in
Car Nation's request for a copy
of his driver's licence, which
showed his age to be 80. Nell also
complained he was not allowed to
use the parking spot designated
for individuals with disabilities
and that a younger employee was
being allocated more hours.
Car Nation argued it was not
unreasonable to ask an employed
driver for a copy of their licence. It
said that all employees were told
not to use parking spots marked
for persons with disabilities and
there was no evidence to support
Nell's claims about a younger colleague
getting more work.
Nell's employment was terminated
by Go Auto in September
2017, and he filed a human rights
complaint against both Car Nation
and Go Auto. No direct reason
was given for termination.
In its Dec. 27 ruling, the tribunal
said there was no evidence of
discrimination. " An applicant's
belief, no matter how strongly
held, is not evidence, " it said. " An
applicant must be able to point to
some evidence, beyond their own
suspicions, that could make out a
link to the (human rights code). "
- ANC
From criminology
to a career in cars
By JIL McINTOSH
OSHAWA CORRESPONDENT
NEIL O'DONNELL
KNOWING WHAT TO ORDER
AND HOW TO GET IT
GENESIS CANADA USES A
direct-to-consumer sales model,
and that has its challenges. At
the automaker's head office in
Markham, Ont., those are tackled
by Neil O'Donnell. manager
of sales operations.
" The biggest challenge is
ensuring we're ordering the
right colours and
trims, so they don't
sit around unsold, "
he told Automotive
News Canada.
" I liaise with our
departments to make
sure new models get
launched on time
with the website and
marketing, and with
our distributors and
the network to identify
any logistics
challenges so they
can communicate
with their [customers]
on the timelines
for delivery. "
O'Donnell, 31,
earned a degree in
criminology with the
intention of becoming
a police officer,
" but I started
mandates are met.
" We monitor new regulations
that come out and make
sure our internal stakeholders
are aware, " he
said.
" A lot has
to do with zero
emissions,
rebates, right
to repair, battery
recycling,
auto theft. And
if Germany
has a new feature and [wants
to see] if it can be introduced to
Canada, I provide guidance on
our regulations. "
Mascola works
with a four-person
team, soon to be five.
" We're involved
with the Global
Automakers of
Canada (which represents
import
Neil O'Donnell,
manager of Genesis
Canada's sales
operations, said the
biggest challenge
is matching vehicle
colours and content
to what customers
want.
PHOTO: GENESIS
CANADA
at Hyundai in the parts warehouse
as a summer student, got
to know about the business and
decided it was the path for me. "
A role opened in Hyundai's
company vehicles and licencing
department, and O'Donnell
joined full time in 2015. He
moved to central and national
sales teams and then to fleet
and certified pre-owned before
switching to Genesis as a vehicle
distribution specialist. He took
his current role in January.
" Our team is smaller than the
Hyundai side, so we get involved
with our distributors a lot more
often, " he said.
" The port strike in Vancouver
[in 2023] was a challenge, and we
had to look into alternative ports
and routes through the U.S. and
shipping [vehicles] through to
Canada. "
Some Genesis models in
Canada come in a single trim
that's higher in content than
what's offered in the United
States.
" EV buyers are usually interested
in a lot of technology, so
we add as much as we can when
we bring those to market.
" Our product teams analyze
the sales data and put together
the packaging to make sure
we're ordering the cars that people
will want. "
REED MASCOLA
DOING WHAT IT TAKES TO MEET
CANADA'S LAWS FOR VEHICLES
AS NATIONAL MANAGER
of government and regulatory
affairs for Mercedes-Benz
Canada, Reed Mascola works
to ensure that government
brands), so we're regularly
on calls with
them and reviewing
upcoming regulations, "
he said.
Mascola is often in
direct contact with
Ottawa. On major
regulatory proposals,
he will write consultation
responses from
the automaker's perspective.
" We
try to provide
a realistic perspective
on what can be
done and the timeframe, and
what support we need. "
Mascola, 36, wanted to be a
car designer, " but I'm terrible
at chemistry and you need that
for mechanical engineering, " he
said, so he earned a bachelor's
degree in automotive management.
He
started at Mazda Canada
in the parts department, then
moved to
MercedesBenz
in 2014
as a parts
wholesale
manager.
Reed Mascola
is a vital
link between
Mercedes-Benz
Canada and
government
policies for
vehicles.
PHOTO:
MERCEDES-BENZ
CANADA
His subsequent
roles
included project
manager
for connectivity
features.
He worked
with a U.S.
counterpart
to roll out the
program in
both countries,
and as
implementation
manager
preparing
dealers for
electric vehicles. Mascola took
his current role in 2021.
" We try to take a constructive
approach, " he said. " The [federal
zero-emission-vehicle sales]
targets seem very aggressive
and it's not just up to the auto
industry to meet them. We need
infrastructure, we need customers
to want these products. My
whole team is eco-conscious and
supportive and we want to make
sure [the policies] will succeed. "
- ANC
http://kumhotire.ca
Automotive News Canada - April 2024

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