The Nova Scotia Federation of Labour has described the Nova Scotia Supreme Court’s decision finding the Public Services Sustainability (2015) Act (Bill 148) unconstitutional and of no force and effect as “a major victory for workers.”
In or around 2014, a round of public sector collective bargaining commenced. On Dec. 14, 2015, the Nova Scotia government introduced Bill 148. The provincial legislature passed Bill 148 on Dec. 18, 2015, and proclaimed it into force on Aug. 22, 2017.
Bill 148 required a wage freeze for the first two years of all public sector collective agreements negotiated during the relevant collective bargaining round. The legislation terminated the accrual of public service awards, a long-standing monetary benefit in many public sector collective agreements.
In Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) v. Nova Scotia (Attorney General), 2026 NSSC 57, nine public sector unions challenged the constitutionality of the provincial wage restraint legislation, specifically its impact on the rights of unionized employees under s. 2(d) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Bill 148 found unconstitutional
Justice Ann E. Smith of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia declared Bill 148 unconstitutional and of no force and effect under s. 52(1) of the Constitution Act, 1982. The court granted the applicant unions the application costs.
The court ruled that the legislation substantially interfered with the unions’ s. 2(d) right to a good faith collective bargaining process. The court held that the provincial government failed to show that Bill 148 reasonably limited the s. 52(1) right under s. 1 of the Charter.
However, the court suspended its declaration of unconstitutionality for 12 months from its decision date because Nova Scotia met the test in Ontario (Attorney General) v. G, 2020 SCC 38. The court acknowledged the likely considerable fiscal implications of immediately declaring the bill invalid.
At the parties’ request and under s. 24(1) of the Charter, the court remitted the question of any further remedy for the parties’ consideration. The court noted that it retained the jurisdiction to resolve any additional remedy in the event of the parties’ disagreement.
Workers’ response
In a statement, the Nova Scotia Federation of Labour shared that workers were demanding that Tim Houston, Nova Scotia’s premier, fulfill his election promise by publicly committing that the provincial government would not appeal the decision.
According to the federation, when campaigning for worker votes in 2021, Houston confirmed that the provincial wage restraint legislation should be null and void.
“By infringing on the Charter rights of workers to full, free and fair collective bargaining, workers lost out on wages and benefits that should rightfully be theirs,” the federation’s statement said.
“Bill 148 was anti-worker legislation, plain and simple,” said Lana Payne, Unifor national president, in a news release. “The court has now affirmed what we have said from the beginning--Bill 148 undermined free and fair collective bargaining and violated workers' constitutional rights.”
“Our members in health care, long-term care, community services and beyond carried the burden of this unconstitutional law,” added Jennifer Murray, Atlantic regional director at Unifor, one of the applicant unions in the case.
Emphasizing governments’ duty to consult and negotiate in good faith, Murray welcomed the ruling’s recognition of the hardship endured and the importance of safeguarding worker rights in the future.
In its statement, the federation urged the Nova Scotia government to focus on making amends for its treatment of workers.
“With the Legislature sitting, [Houston] can commit there will be no appeal, and do it from the floor of the House,” the federation’s statement said. “There must be no question that this stain on the history of workers’ rights in Nova Scotia is behind us, and that the workers harmed by Bill 148 will get the justice they deserve.”