The Health Care Council of Unions will hold Nova Scotia’s first ever province-wide Health Care Bargaining Unit strike vote.
According to a statement from the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union (NSGEU) to their members, the move is in response to issues multiple unions representing health care employees say they’ve encountered while bargaining with their employers – the IWK and the Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA).
“The Employer’s representatives from the NSHA and IWK have slowed the pace of bargaining significantly in the past two months. The Health Care Council of Unions has become increasingly frustrated by the Employers’ refusal to seriously consider important Union proposals,” reads the statement.
Members of the NSGEU, Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), the Nova Scotia Nurses Union (NSNU), and UNIFOR, will take part in the vote.
That accounts for 6,500 health care employees from Yarmouth to Cape Breton.
In a statement to members, NSGEU says the vote will be taken to send a clear message to their employers and the government.
“In addition to stalling progress, the Employers continue to table new proposals more than a year after bargaining began and continue to propose significant claw backs of benefits that our members currently maintain,” reads the statement.
The council is also unhappy with a new proposal that allows the health authority to reassign employees wherever they choose.
The Council of Unions, NSHA and IWK have further conciliation dates set throughout April and May.
NSGEU says they’ll have further information on the strike vote in the coming days.
A spokesperson for NSGEU says a media statement will be released tomorrow morning.
