TORONTO - More than 80,000 Ontario farm workers have lost the right to unionize.

The Supreme Court of Canada ruled today that a provincial ban on farm unions is constitutional.

In November 2008, the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld a United Food and Commercial Workers union charter challenge against the ban.

The Ontario government appealed the ruling to the high court, which heard arguments in December 2009.

The high court allowed the McGuinty government's appeal, denying Ontario agriculture workers the right to join unions and bargain collectively.

UFCW Canada represents more than 250,000 Canadian workers and has been advocating for farm worker's rights for over two decades.



