This case was about the right to collective bargaining in the context of a law applying to feminized sectors of Ontario’s economy, including health care, social services, and education.

LEAF intervened before the Court of Appeal for Ontario.

Facts

In 2019, the Ontario government enacted the Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector for Future Generations Act, 2019 (also known as “Bill 124”). Bill 124 imposed restraints that limited wage/compensation increases to 1% during each of three one-year moderation periods. The law particularly affected women, and especially racialized women, who make up a large majority of workers in health care, social services, and education.

Arguments

LEAF’s arguments focused on how s. 28 of the Charter requires courts to meaningfully consider gender when applying other rights under the Charter. For freedom of association under s. 2(d) of the Charter, this means thinking about how collective bargaining helps to address gendered labour matters like fair wages, compensation, staffing, retention, and precarious employment. Laws like Bill 124 have a particularly severe effect on feminized sectors of the economy, because of how gendered labour is devalued.

Outcome

A majority of the Court of Appeal for Ontario found that Bill 124 violated the collective bargaining rights of unionized employees in the broader public sector. Although the Court did not engage with s. 28, the decision represents an victory for collective bargaining rights and will have positive effects for women workers in Ontario.

Download LEAF’s factum here.

Read the Court of Appeal for Ontario’s decision here.

LEAF is grateful to Christine Davies, Kat Owens, and Danielle Sandhu, counsel for LEAF in this case.