Ontario is taking the public sector to court over Bill 124 today. Here's what you need to know

The Ontario government’s appeal of a court ruling that struck down Bill 124—a controversial piece of legislation that capped public sector wages for a period of three years—begins on Tuesday.

The Ontario government’s appeal of a court ruling that struck down Bill 124—a controversial piece of legislation that capped public sector wages for a period of three years—begins on Tuesday.

The court case is the accumulation of years of legal back and forth beginning in 2019 when the Doug Ford government first proposed the bill.

The Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector for Future Generations Act received royal assent on Nov. 7, 2019. The goal of the bill was to cap public sector wage increases at one per cent for a period of three years in an effort to help eliminate the deficit.

Officials argued the legislation was meant to be “exceptional and time limited.”

However, the legislation received a lot of criticism from groups representing public sector workers who argued it was unconstitutional and should be repealed. These groups then decided to fight the bill in court.

The courts first heard the case, which involves 10 applicants, in September 2022. The applicants are primarily unions who represent public sector workers such as teachers, nurses and other employees.

The groups argued the bill violates a section of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms that protects meaningful collective bargaining, while the province argued the opposite. The government reasoned that the Charter doesn’t guarantee “unlimited annual raises for public sector workers.”