In setback for UCP government, judge grants injunction halting application of Bill 9

In a setback for Alberta’s United Conservative Party Government, a judge has granted the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees an injunction halting application  of Bill 9, which delayed arbitration for thousands of public employees in Alberta. UNA had intervenor status in the case.

The ruling by Mr. Justice Eric Macklin of the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench this afternoon suspends the bill, now properly known as the Public Sector Wage Arbitration Deferral Act, which had postponed wage talks until the end of October.

Bill 9 was intended to delay collective bargaining and arbitration for tens of thousands of Alberta public employees, including most of UNA’s more than 30,000 members. It was passed by the Legislature on June 19 and was given Royal Assent, becoming law, on June 28.

In his ruling, Justice Macklin said “members of the public expect that parties to an agreement will honour commitments made in agreements, and they reasonably expect that parties with whom they contract, regardless of who that may be, will honor the terms of the agreement made.”

Stating that that “it is no different if one of the contracting parties is the government,” the judge ruled “it is in the long-term public interest for the public to see that its government cannot unilaterally change its contractual obligations through legislation that may interfere with Charter rights.”

In a news release, AUPE called Justice Macklin’s decision “a fundamental victory for all workers in Alberta.”

“Justice Macklin was very clear that collective bargaining is a right protected by the constitution,” Smith said. “Governments cannot attack those rights using legislation and the power of the state.”

UNA Labour Relations Director David Harrigan said in a statement on social media this evening that UNA had filed grievances with Alberta Health Services and the other employers over the cancellation of the arbitration and agreed to await the court’s decision on the injunction.

“We will contact AHS this week and expect that setting dates for our arbitration to resume will happen as soon as possible,” Harrigan stated. Follow-up work will begin in the morning, he added.

He thanked “all members of UNA and other unions who have participated in information pickets” protesting the bill, and congratulated AUPE for the victory.

Bill 9 was intended to delay collective bargaining and arbitration for tens of thousands of Alberta public employees, including most of UNA’s more than 30,000 members, until the end of October. It was passed by the Legislature on June 19 and was given Royal Assent, becoming law, on June 28.

In a separate legal action, UNA has filed a statement of claim with the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta on July 3 seeking a declaration the Act is of no force or effect because it is violation of the freedom of association provision of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which the courts have ruled guarantees the right of Canadian workers to bargain collectively.