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Who:
New Brunswick Council of Nursing Home Unions (NBCNHU), comprised of 35 Locals of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).

The people who feed, bathe, comfort and care for the residents of nursing homes. They also change the beds, clean the rooms, prepare the food, ensure there are clean linens and that everyone has clean clothes. In addition, they are the maintenance, activity, clerical and security workers. They fight to keep the home in nursing home.

What:
Information pickets to be held outside nursing homes. Nursing home workers will distribute information describing the work they do and outlining their concerns to residents, their families, the public and the media.

Where and When:

  • May 28 Caraquet, Shippagan, Perth-Andover, St. Basile, St. John,

    St. Andrews, Edmundston, Albert, Grand Falls

  • May 29 Dalhousie, Woodstock, Grand Manan, Moncton, Saint John, Boiestown, Baker Brook, Memramcook, Shd0069ac, Lameque
  • May 30 Fredericton, Moncton, Campbelton, Campobello, Mill Cove, Riverview, St. Quentin, Robertville, St. Stephen, Inkerman
  • May 31 Miramichi, Sussex, Sackville, St. John, Bathurst

Why:
Nursing home workers say that due to a lack of commitment to fairness on the part of employers and the province, negotiations are going nowhere fast. Outstanding issues are primarily related to workload and its effect on quality of care, and include staffing standards (short-staffing has become the norm, rather than the exception), sick days, pensions and wages. Dates of information pickets have been chosen to coincide with negotiations.

Nursing home workers care about the quality of care that residents receive. Residents and their families see the work they do, the long hours put in to make sure that the quality of care in nursing homes remains high. Unfortunately, the people who run the nursing homes and the provincial government dont seem to make the best resident care as much of a priority.

The province-wide rallies taking place this week are part of the NBCNHUs campaign to Demand Respect for nursing home residents, their families and those who care for them.

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For more information:
Michel Boudreau, President, NBCNHU, (506) 381-7490 (cell)
Gordon Black, CUPE Nursing Homes Coordinator, (506) 461-4829 (cell),
Laurie Kingston, CUPE Communications, (613) 266-1415 (cell).