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PARRY SOUND, Ont. Workers at Belvedere Heights Home for the Aged are sounding the alarm about pending service cuts that could affect the standard of care at the facility that serves seniors and their families in the Parry Sound district.
Management has announced cuts effective April 1 in every department dietary, laundry, housekeeping, nursing and programs. Combined, the cuts mean 146.5 fewer hours of care every week. The cuts affect 110 full and part-time workers who belong to CUPE 4824.
We will be distributing information to residents, their families and the wider community and asking them to rally in support of a high standard of care at Belvedere Heights, said CUPE National Representative John Cromwell. We understand that local municipalities have decreased the amount they contribute to Belvedere Heights at the same time as the needs of residents, seniors who have given so much to our communities, are becoming more complex.
In their last contract negotiations, the workers agreed to a wage freeze in exchange for a promise of no layoffs.
Surprise, surprise, Cromwell said. That contract expires on March 31. The cuts to hours take effect the next day.
The union is asking community members to contact Belvedere Heights management as well as their mayors and municipal councillors to tell them to stop the cuts and maintain full service for Parry Sound district seniors.
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For more information, contact:
John Cromwell, CUPE National Representative, 705-722-7387
Pat Daley, CUPE Communications, 416-616-6142
