Group Health has 'plan in place' if workers go on strike

The Group Health Centre says it is “disappointed” and “frustrated” that a looming strike could “once again” impact patient care at the facility.

Last week, approximately 220 health care workers and clerical staff — including registered practical nurses, social workers and physiotherapists — voted to strike, with picketing set to begin Friday if a deal cannot be reached. 

CUPE Local 894 says its members are “over worked, stressed, and burned out” and deserved a pay raise.

“In the event of a labour disruption at Group Health Centre, we want to assure our patients and community that we have a plan in place to continue providing health care services, minimizing disruptions in care as best as we can,” says a news release issued by GHC. “We are disappointed to be in this situation, and frustrated for our patients whose access to primary care may once again be impacted.”

The release notes that CUPE members have rejected two tentative agreements reached between Group Health and the union bargaining team, which included a 9.5 per cent wage increase over three years. 

“The wage increases and other compensation improvements are in line with the sector across the province and represent a substantial increased investment by GHC of approximately $1.5 million over 3 years,” the release says.

Below is the full news release from the Group Health Centre:

In the event of a labour disruption at Group Health Centre, we want to assure our patients and community that we have a plan in place to continue providing health care services, minimizing disruptions in care as best as we can. We are disappointed to be in this situation, and frustrated for our patients whose access to primary care may once again be impacted.

Recognizing the important role our employees play in delivering high quality care to our community, a labour disruption will impact our ability to provide our full capacity of health care services to patients. Our priority is continuity of care and healthcare services for our community.

We remain committed to working towards a resolution and are scheduled to be back at the bargaining table for mediation on Thursday, July 25.

Through the dedicated work of the GHC and CUPE bargaining teams, two tentative agreements were successfully negotiated during this round of bargaining, which occurred between February and June 2024. Neither of these agreements were accepted by the members. Appreciating the crucial role of our team and the current economic conditions, the most recent agreement included a 9.5% wage increase over a 3-year period. The wage increases and other compensation improvements are in line with the sector across the province and represent a substantial increased investment by GHC of approximately $1.5 million over three years.

Over the past several years, the parties (GHC and CUPE) have negotiated and ratified several collective agreements. The most recent agreement included a 3.75 per cent increase in 2023, as well as a financial signing bonus for members. In the years prior, negotiated and agreed upon wage increases were reflective of the environment at that time and aligned with the healthcare sector.

We remain committed to reaching a resolution at the negotiation table so that we can continue to focus on our priority to deliver care to our community.