The labour movement earned an important victory yesterday for the rights of workers and the collective bargaining process.
The McNeil Liberals passed Bill 148 in 2015, and it was proclaimed into law in 2017. This legislation imposed significant wage restraint and stripped away benefits from working people by circumventing the fair and free collective bargaining process. Nova Scotia unions (SEIU, NSNU, NSGEU, CUPE, CUPW, NSTU, Unifor and IUOE) came together and challenged the legality of Bill 148 in court. The law was found to be unconstitutional earlier this year and the court provided time for the unions and Province to attempt to negotiate a financial remedy. The parties then engaged in a mediation process through the assistance of a jointly appointed arbitrator.
Through legal counsel, the parties were back before Justice Smith on Monday October 19, 2026, to provide the court with a proposed consent order that requires the Province to pay damages to union members who were employed during the four years that Bill 148 prevented free and fair collective bargaining.
The agreement put forward includes an award of damages of up to $5,000 to union members identified on each bargaining unit’s seniority list (or comparable list for the bargaining unit if there is no seniority list), as follows:
- $1,250 if the member worked during the first year of wage restraint.
- $1,250 if the member worked during the second year of wage restraint.
- $750 if the member worked during the third year of wage restraint.
- $500 if the member worked during the fourth year of wage restraint.
- $1,250 for each member who was eligible for a Service Award and would have accrued additional service towards the Service Award but for Bill 148.
The eligibility for compensation is restricted to those who were impacted by the legislation.
The exact years the wage restraint was in place vary by bargaining unit. The years can be identified by the four years in which the wage increases were set at 0%, 0%, 1%, and 1.5% with 0.5% on the last day of the fourth year.
As part of the proposal, the unions achieved a commitment from the Province that it will not pursue an appeal of Justice Smith’s decision. This means that both the February 25, 2026, decision and today’s proposal are not put at risk by an appeal. This commitment also ensures that Justice Smith’s decision stands as a precedent for any other government who would consider using legislation to restrain collective bargaining rights in the future.
This is a significant win for workers, not just in Nova Scotia, but across the country. The precedent of this order removes the legislative hammer governments have used in the past to impose wage patterns or other conditions on unionized workers. Future negotiations will be protected because of this landmark case.
It is important to remember that the primary objective of the court case was to have Bill 148 ruled illegal, which it did. If this law was allowed to stand, unchallenged, it would forever impact collective bargaining as workers would have no leverage or power at the bargaining table. The government could legislate any outcome it wanted without any recourse for workers.
Justice Smith has asked for clarification revisions to the proposed order, as well as confirmation of payment dates. If the Justice accepts the amended order, it will be issued from the court and will mark the end to this long legal process.
The Unions have no specific details to share at this time. Please continue to monitor your email and our website for future updates as additional information is made available to SEIU and our fellow unions.
NOTE: If you’re an SEIU Local 2 member in Nova Scotia impacted by Bill 148 and did not receive an email from us, please contact our office to add your email address to our list. Call 902-455-1095.
