The Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union (NSGEU) says health admin staff are ready to strike.
The health administrative staff contracts expired almost three years ago and a deal has not been made between union representatives and Nova Scotia Health and the Health Association of Nova Scotia.
A meeting held last Thursday between the union representatives and the province’s health representatives has still yet to see a decision on who is required for the essential services agreement.
“So where that is right now, the labour board is hearing our arguments and the employers' arguments and then they will make a decision,” Sandra Mullen, president of the NSGEU says.
The essential service agreement is a requirement under the Health Authorities Act to decide which healthcare workers are essential during strikes. Mullen says the agreement is formulated to support the employers.
“It is the employer putting up roadblocks every time we suggest that ‘this unit can function with less or no one,’” Mullen says.
In statement to CKDU on Sept. 20, Nova Scotia Health and IWK said the tentative agreement was rejected in April by the union but are in "regular communication with the council and look forward to reaching a fair and respectful agreement with our administrative professionals."
In June, around 5,000 Nova Scotia healthcare workers voted to authorize a strike after 81.5 per cent of the workers voted to reject the tentative agreement with the provincial government.
“We could potentially see a strike as early as mid-October,” Mullen says.
The strike involving administrative workers would affect areas such as beds being assigned for patients, payroll management, appointment booking and many other administrative areas.
“It could substantially slow down services a great deal,” Mullen says.
Some health administrative workers make $20 per hour and need to work two jobs, Mullen says.
“It's imperative that these folks get back to the table and negotiate a wage that is going to give them an increase to offset the inflationary times we've been living through,” she says.
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