“Today, in another victory for workers and all Ontarians, the Court of Appeal for Ontario has upheld the Ontario Superior Court’s 2022 ruling on Bill 124 – OECTA et al. v. His Majesty the King – which found the legislation unconstitutional.

The Association is proud to have played a lead role in the appeal, to defend the rights of Catholic teachers and all workers in Ontario, as we did in the initial, successful Bill 124 challenge.

Passed in 2019, the bill imposed a one per cent limit on salary increases, for three years, for a range of public sector workers, including education and health care. At the time, the Ford Conservative government failed to provide sufficient evidence that the bill was necessary, and continues to fail to provide substantive rationale, as evident in the latest court ruling against the government.

Catholic teachers urge the Ford Conservative government to accept the courts’ rulings and abandon its misguided priorities.

Bill 124 was a tremendous abuse of power – and another example of this government’s willingness to brazenly trample the Charter-protected rights of Ontarians. Instead of targeting teachers and other public sector workers with legislation that interfered in free and fair collective bargaining, which hurt students, teachers, and schools, the Ford Conservative government should take these rulings – and lessons – to heart, and try actually supporting workers for a change.”

- René Jansen in de Wal, President of the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association