Bill 148 Battle Continues

*This article appears in the current issue of the Union Stand

As reported to members in the last issue of The Stand, and via email, the union was successful in its long-standing fight against the regressive anti-worker legislation known as Bill 148.

More than a decade after the McNeil Liberal government passed Bill 148, the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia issued a historic decision that rules government violated the constitutional rights of public sector workers by imposing a non-negotiated wage pattern on the entire public sector (0%, 0%, 1.0%, 1.5% & an additional 0.5% on the last day of the agreement); removing long-standing articles from various collective agreements (ending the retirement allowance/public service award as of April 1, 2015); and prohibiting an arbitrator from awarding anything above the above-noted wage pattern.

This was an enormous win for the NSGEU and the eight other unions representing public sector workers impacted by this legislative overreach.
While the judge issued her decision in February, she must also issue an order, which we are still awaiting. Once that order is issued, the government has a finite period of time to decide whether they will appeal the decision.

If the government chooses to appeal the decision this fight will drag on for an even longer period of time.

If they do not appeal, the judge’s decision allows parties to attempt to negotiate a remedy within an additional 12-month time limit, with the judge reserving jurisdiction on the case to order a remedy, if required.

Tim Houston had promised to repeal Bill 148 when he was campaigning in August 2021. But when he was elected Premier, he broke that promise and continued to waste taxpayers’ money on this legal challenge, which he has now lost.

We certainly hope Premier Houston does not double-down and continue to fight legislation that he opposed when in Opposition.

In comments made to media in May, Houston laid the Bill 148 debacle at the feet of his predecessors in the former McNeil Liberal government, stating: “It’s a big, big mess that they left us,” and musing that it could cost $300 million to resolve.

He also told reporters that “lawyers are still lawyering,” but that an appeal was not his first choice, though he would “have to keep that option open.”
We will continue to keep the membership updated on the status of this ongoing fight.