The Nova Scotia government on Tuesday moved to enforce Bill 148, imposing a four-year wage package on 75,000 public sector employees.
According to the government, the legislation will now be referred to the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal to rule on the legislation’s constitutionality.
The bill was originally passed in December 2015, with the goal of preventing arbitrators from “awarding public sector contracts beyond what the province can afford.”
READ MORE: Conciliation talks between NSGEU and Nova Scotia fail, proceeding to arbitration
Premier Stephen McNeil said at the time that the government would not bring the bill into force until it was needed.
That decision was reached on Tuesday.
Premier Stephen McNeil says the proclamation of the Public Services Sustainability Act is being done in the “best interests of Nova Scotians.”
The surprise announcement from Mark Furey, the province’s labour relations minister, came after talks broke down between the government and the nearly 8,000 public sector workerstwo weeks ago, prompting the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union (NSGEU) to file for arbitration.
“The government must safeguard the interests of taxpayers,” said Furey at Tuesday’s briefing.
The law will apply to unionized and non-unionized public sector employees, with the exception of physicians, according to the government. Teachers, Crown attorneys and other groups that have their own legislative framework with the province are also exempt.
NSGEU president Jason MacLean said in a statement Tuesday afternoon that the province refuses to work with the union.
“What is clear is that this government doesn’t care about hard-working people,” MacLean said.
“These are the actions of a snake and a total failure in leadership.”
He said he had spoken with the “new Minister of ANTI-Labour” last week, hoping to build a good relationship, but that “he didn’t take long to betray that trust.”
WATCH: NSGEU to return to talks with Nova Scotia government
MacLean went on to say the union had brought numerous proposals to negotiations, but it “has been a game for Stephen McNeil.”
He added that there was money for various projects, including spending announcements that led up to the May 2017 provincial election, but stated “there is no money” for public service workers.
“This is a dark day in labour for Nova Scotians,” MacLean told reporters at a news conference.
The act stipulates the amount of new money employers can offer is three per cent over four years.
The act also freezes a retirement allowance retroactive to April 1, 2015.
There are currently about 300 expired contracts for public sector employers.
They had previously stated that they do not believe Bill 148 would withstand a court challenge.
— With files from Sean Previl and Natasha Pace, Global News, and The Canadian Press