HEU is pressing health employers on pay equity and workforce retention after government legislation imposed a wage-slashing contract on health care workers.
The union is trying to resolve two years of pay equity adjustments that were already agreed to and in the works when the provincial government legislated an 11 per cent wage cut after a four-day strike.
The adjustments worth one per cent of payroll would cushion the blow of the wage cuts for some workers.
But while Bill 37 did not eliminate ongoing pay equity adjustments, they can make no claim that theyve preserved pay equity, says HEU spokesperson Chris Allnutt. The Campbell Liberals wage cuts have wiped out more than a decade of pay equity gains a shameful attack on womens work.
The union also wants employers to deal with the fact that so many workers are looking to leave the health care sector.
Before these cuts, one out of three HEU members was looking for work outside health care, says Allnutt. The governments wage cuts will make it even harder to keep skilled, experienced workers in our hospitals and care facilities.