City roads workers falsely portrayed as stealing asphalt say the accusations hurt their marriages, their job prospects and life with their neighbours — and they want compensation for those difficulties.

One worker says neighbours stopped speaking to him when the city floated allegations that his pothole-filling crew was illegally selling asphalt.

Many of the grievors experienced significant distress, anguish, anxiety, and frustration as a result of these allegations. - CUPE Local 5167 in its submission to arbitrator Lorne Slotnick

Another says even his wife doubted him when he said he didn't steal anything.

Yet another says people approached him, asking if he had any asphalt for sale. Several say they suffered depression, embarrassment and anxiety. They were passed over for jobs.

Those are some of the complaints introduced as part of a battle between the city and CUPE Local 5167 for damages 25 workers say they're owed because the city said publicly that they may have stolen asphalt. Investigations later showed they had not.

It's the final chapter in a years-long debacle that saw nearly 50 city workers fired, suspended or investigated over infractions such as time theft and breach of trust.

Twenty-one of the 29 disciplined workers grieved their penalties before arbitrator Lorne Slotnick, who ruled that 15 be hired back, although most would be on probation.

The case involved a litany of infractions the city found through surveillance, GPS and other means in late 2012.

They found roads workers taking extra long lunches, Slotnick's ruling found, and running extraneous personal errands during work time. In some cases, workers went out of the way for $1 cappuccinos. It revealed, Slotnick said, a "culture of low expectations."

Now, Slotnick has one more decision to make — whether the 25 pothole-filling roads workers are entitled to damages over the asphalt comments.

It was back in November 2012 when the city heard rumours that people were illegally selling asphalt.

Started with a rumour

The rumour, Slotnick's summary says, was that city workers were dumping asphalt from the city-owned asphalt recycling machine and buying it from commercial producers instead. The hunch, the summary says, is that "money was changing hands improperly."

Media reports at the time referenced the city investigating workers allegedly selling asphalt off the back of city vehicles. The city also publicly stated that Hamilton Police Service was investigating.

But neither the city, nor the police, found merit to the asphalt rumours. Police wrote to the city in August 2013 and said there was no evidence of criminal behaviour when it came to city workers and COCO paving — the company supplying most of the crews' asphalt.

The two sides have appeared before Slotnick three times this year — most recently on Wednesday. The hearing reconvenes in January.

The union argues that the public attention has hurt the workers' reputations and relationships.

Distress, anguish, anxiety and frustration

"Many of the grievors experienced significant distress, anguish, anxiety, and frustration as a result of these allegations," the union said in a submission to Slotnick.

Of the 29 employees disciplined in early 2013, seven were terminated but became 30-day suspensions based on "additional information." Twenty-one fired and four suspended employees grieved their cases before Slotnick in a process that lasted more than a year and a half.

Slotnick ruled the city rehire 15 of them, but that most would be on probation for two years. Most now have 30-day suspensions on their records.

Of the rehired employees, five received back pay. Another nine received no back pay, which means they were without pay for about 27 months.

Meanwhile, eight supervisors represented by CUPE 1041 reached a confidential agreement with the city.