September 25th, 2015

Private homecare providers must get serious about bargaining with nurses: NDP

NDP MPP for Welland and Labour Critic Cindy Forster called on the Deputy Premier during Question Period this morning to answer to why over 100 frontline homecare providers have been left out on the street during a nearly six month strike as for-profit CarePartners in Welland continues to receive public dollars.

A negotiator for the private service provider brought forward a proposal last week that would force nurses to take on any additional costs associated with implementing the provincial government’s pension plan. The homecare workers had returned to the table in hopes to put an end to the strike. 

 

“CarePartners continues to receive their piece of the pie even as their frontline staff, nurses, Speaker, who do everything from wound care to dialysis, have been on strike seeking their first collective agreement for the last six months,” Forster said. “Speaker, will the Deputy Premier tell these nurses, these frontline health professionals who are here today, why it is they’ve been left out on the street unable to provide care to thousands of patients who require home care in Niagara while the government continues to shovel money to CarePartners so they can pay the people taking these worker’s jobs?”

“Speaker, will this government in front of these homecare workers commit today to tell CarePartners and the government’s chief negotiator to withdraw that outrageous demand immediately, get serious about bargaining, get a collective agreement or see their funding dry up until they do?” Forster said.