“Profit-taking will undermine patient safety and lead to higher death rates:” CUPE reacts to Etobicoke General Hospital’s decision to privatize housekeeping and ancillary service

OCHU, Solidarity

TORONTO – Etobicoke General Hospital is moving ahead with privatization of housekeeping, waste management, laundry, and portering services despite strong opposition from staff represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees. Earlier in June, the union organized a demonstration after hearing about the hospital’s privatization plan, which will impact 224 jobs. “The hospital is making…

Privatization of cleaning and other support services will increase threat of superbug infections, cautions CUPE at rally outside Etobicoke General Hospital

OCHU, Solidarity

Union protests hospital’s plan to contract out cleaning, portering, waste management, and laundry services TORONTO – Back in 2006, an outbreak of superbug C. difficile at a Sault Ste. Marie Hospital killed 10 patients directly and another 8 indirectly. The hospital, which had privatized housekeeping services, was forced to increase cleaning staff by 40 per…

65,000 Ontario hospital workers awarded 6% wage increase, benefit improvements in new contract

OCHU, SEIU, Solidarity

TORONTO – 65,000 Ontario hospital workers represented by the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions – CUPE (OCHU-CUPE) and SEIU Healthcare will see a 6% wage increase (3% wage increases in each of the next two years), improvements to health and dental benefits, enhancements to weekend, evening, and night premiums, and pay for periods of quarantine…

CUPE’s hospital members adopt strong mandate to defend the quality of patient care

OCHU, Solidarity

TORONTO – Hospital and long-term care workers represented by Ontario’s largest hospital union elected a new executive board on April 11 with a strong mandate to fight back against the government’s policies of underfunding and the privatization of surgeries and diagnostics. Michael Hurley and Sharon Richer were acclaimed as the president and secretary-treasurer of CUPE’s…

“Just enough funding to maintain a perpetual crisis in hospital care:” union laments provincial budget

OCHU, Solidarity

TORONTO – The increase in hospital funding announced yesterday is not enough to ease the hospital crisis and will actually cause further deterioration, says CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU-CUPE). “It doesn’t keep up with hospital inflationary pressures (of 5.6 per cent) let alone the pressures of an aging and growing population, even as…

Ford government must increase hospital funding by at least 8 per cent to ease the staffing and capacity crisis – hospital union

OCHU, Solidarity

TORONTO – Annual funding for Ontario’s hospitals must increase by at least eight per cent in this year’s budget to address the staffing and capacity crisis linked to ER closures, overcrowded hospitals, and delayed surgeries and diagnostic procedures, says CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU-CUPE). “Ontario’s hospital staff and patients can’t cope with another…

Hospital workers protest “cuts and chaos” at Lakeridge Health, blame Ford government for underfunding

Health Care, OCHU, Solidarity

OSHAWA, ON – CUPE 6364 workers at Lakeridge Health rallied in Oshawa today, protesting “cuts and chaos” in response to provincial underfunding of hospitals. According to the union, hospital management has been eliminating full-time housekeeping and clerical positions, and overloading other workers with additional responsibilities. “This is shameful behavior by hospital management, to cut staff…

“Ford’s attack on women’s wages”: new report shows real dollar wage cuts in public sector have widened gender pay gap in Ontario

OCHU, Solidarity

TORONTO – A new research report shows that the Ford government’s policies have led to real dollar wage cuts for the predominantly female workforce in the broader public sector, negatively impacting Ontario’s gender pay gap. The report, Women’s Wages and the attack on broader public sector workers, released today by CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital…