MacGillivray Guest Home Workers Vote to Strike

SYDNEY, NS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Long term care workers from MacGillivray Guest Home in Sydney, represented by Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) 1562, voted 98% in favour of a strike mandate.

“The long term care sector has been struggling for a long time, and this isn’t the first time we, as workers, have raised the alarm. Even just in Cape Breton, any long term care worker will tell you that their home is understaffed, that they’re finding it hard to make ends meet on the wages provided, or that they’re forced to work overtime to cover retention issues,” said CUPE 1562 President Paula Giusti. “Every home might not have the same issues, but if you talk to enough of us, a pattern emerges. So that makes me wonder: why isn’t the government listening?”

CUPE 1562 is one of over 50 long term care locals in Nova Scotia represented by CUPE, half of which have taken strike votes in the past month with overwhelmingly positive results. This move is part of a coordinated effort to draw the government’s attention to bargaining as it moves into conciliation, as the union feels there has been no urgency in recent bargaining despite the contract being 2 years expired and their wages being the lowest in Atlantic Canada.

“Long term care works because there are dedicated people who spend their lives caring for the residents of each home,” said CUPE Long Term Care Coordinator Tammy Martin. “Without them, our seniors would be left with no support or relying heavily on their families for basic care. Their job is vital, instrumental even, yet the Houston government refuses to recognize their importance with the wages they deserve.”

:so/cope491