Ontario Appeals Ruling That Strikes Down Public Sector Workers Wage Cap Act

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The Ontario government is appealing a court ruling that struck down a law limiting the wages of public sector workers.

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In the notice of appeal filed Thursday in Ontario’s highest court, the province argues that the judge erred in ruling that Bill 124 infringes the plaintiffs’ rights to freedom of association and to collective bargaining.

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In his November 29 ruling, Judge Markus Koehnen ruled the law unconstitutional.

Groups representing several hundred thousand public sector employees had challenged the constitutionality of the law passed in 2019, which capped salary increases at 1% per year for three years.

The province had argued the law did not violate constitutional rights, saying the charter only protects the bargaining process, not the outcome, and that the bill was a time-limited approach to help eliminate the deficit .

This report from The Canadian Press was first published on December 29, 2022.