-

St. Vincent’s Nursing Home Votes to Strike

HALIFAX, NS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Long term care workers from St. Vincent’s Nursing Home, represented by CUPE 1082, have voted 97.5% in favour of a strike mandate. As the lead table for CUPE long term care bargaining, CUPE 1082 is fighting for better wages, improved recruitment and retention, and acknowledgment of the work of support services classifications for the entire sector.

“Long term care workers in Nova Scotia are the lowest paid in Atlantic Canada,” said CUPE 1082 President Janet MacDonald. “That’s not an exaggeration, that’s a fact, and it’s unacceptable. How are we supposed to care for your loved ones if we can’t even afford to care for our own?”

Several essential classifications in long term care, such as dietary aides and seamstresses, make less than $20 an hour, putting them well behind the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives` living wage estimates for Nova Scotia. But they are not alone, classifications such as cooks and maintenance also make several dollars less than their counterparts in other Atlantic provinces.

“Wages shouldn’t be a race to the bottom,” continued MacDonald, “but, if they were, Nova Scotia would be dead last and that’s shameful.”

On September 22, members of CUPE 1082 alongside the CUPE Long Term and Community Care Committee attended the first fall seating at the legislature where questions about the lack of attention given to senior care workers in this province were posed.

“Minister Adams stood there and told us that they’re doing their best for long term care, that they gave CCAs [Continuing Care Assistants] a raise outside their contract,” said CUPE Long Term Care Coordinator Tammy Martin. “But long-term care is more than just CCAS. It’s LPNs [Licensed Practical Nurses], it’s support services, it’s an entire team that keeps each home running. Without even one of them, everything falls apart. We need a contract that acknowledges all of long-term care, not just one classification, and that’s what we’re fighting for.”

:so/cope491
:bw/cope-491

Contacts

For more information, please contact:

Tammy Martin
CUPE Long Term Care Coordinator
902-577-2463

Taylor Johnston
CUPE Atlantic Communications Representative
tjohnston@cupe.ca

Industry:

Canadian Union of Public Employees

Release Versions
English

Contacts

For more information, please contact:

Tammy Martin
CUPE Long Term Care Coordinator
902-577-2463

Taylor Johnston
CUPE Atlantic Communications Representative
tjohnston@cupe.ca

More News From Canadian Union of Public Employees

Ajax library workers reject two-tier contract: ‘We need a fair deal for everyone’

AJAX, ON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Library workers in the Town of Ajax, Ontario have massively rejected a two-tier contract in a “final offer” vote requested by their Employer. Full-time employees voted 100 per cent to reject the offer, while part-time employees voted 96.1 per cent. Voter turnout was nearly 96 per cent.“This is an overwhelming rejection by our members of the Library’s attempt to create unequal and unfair working conditions in the workplace,” said Elaine Lievaart, acting President of CUP...

“Why are we excluded?” CUPE personal support workers to rally to be treated like every other profession in Ontario

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Personal support workers have been often treated as lesser workers in the health care system – often by management, and certainly by the government. The Ford administration’s new regulatory body for PSWs are only reinforcing those sentiments, according to Tera Engley, a PSW and the President of CUPE Local132. One of the fundamental problems with the Health and Supportive Care Providers Oversight Authority (HSCPOA) is the absence of PSWs on its board of directors, says...

PAL Airlines Flight Attendants File for Conciliation

ST. JOHN’S, Newfoundland and Labrador--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Flight attendants at PAL Airlines are filing for conciliation with the federal labour board after bargaining has failed to produce sufficient progress on key issues. The flight attendants, represented by CUPE 5451, have been negotiating with PAL Airlines since the spring of 2025. Their previous collective agreement expired April 30, 2025. “Our members show up every day to keep passengers safe and keep communities connected across PAL’s net...
Back to Newsroom