Wednesday, November 30, 2022

Superior Court Declares Bill 124 Unconstitutional

Cambridge, ON—On November 29, 2022, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice declared Bill 124 unconstitutional. CLAC wholeheartedly welcomes this decision and calls upon the government of Ontario not to appeal the ruling.

Ontario’s healthcare system is in crisis. Workers who are already underpaid and now facing decades-high inflation leave the healthcare field every day. This law deepened the staffing emergency and arbitrarily picked on healthcare workers in not-for-profit long term care homes and homecare agencies, along with hospitals and certain social services by limiting their wage increases to one percent annually for three years. It interfered with collective bargaining for thousands of Ontario’s most vulnerable, lowest paid, and desperately needed workers.

Bill 124 was a severe and unnecessary tactic. CLAC lobbied the government to repeal this law or to exclude healthcare workers from its provisions.

“This decision is a win for unionized workers across the province,” says Ian DeWaard, CLAC Ontario director. “We call on the province and employers impacted by Bill 124 to return to the bargaining table to negotiate fair and much-needed compensation improvements for our healthcare heroes.”

Superior Court Declares Bill 124 Unconstitutional

You might be interested in