Yesterday, Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Eric Macklin ruled a suspension of the Alberta Public Sector Wage Arbitration Deferral Act (Bill 9), legislation that postponed wage talks until October 30. The Alberta government will likely appeal the decision. By granting the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) an interim injunction against Bill 9, the ruling allows contractually agreed to arbitration talks for 65,000 AUPE members to proceed.  Macklin wrote in the decision that “A member of the public expects, and is entitled to expect, that an agreement reached with the government will be honoured”, and further that “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”. The president of AUPE, Guy Smith, in response to the ruling said “ They (the government) cannot run roughshod over things like free collective bargaining rights”. AUPE will pursue this further, and challenge the constitutionality of Bill 9, with the goal that it is struck down. Judge Macklin’s ruling is a near term victory for public employees in Alberta, in that it upholds the fundamental rights of unions to fair bargaining, formally agreed to by unions and employers, through negotiation. I will continue providing updates on Bill 9 and other matters.