Workers at long term care facility The Meadows in Nova Scotia held a strike vote last week, with 100% of votes in favour of job action. CUPE 5248 members are the second long-term care facility in the Yarmouth area to vote in favour of job action in the past week.
“We hope this sends a strong message to our employer. Our bargaining committee has the support of every single 5248 member behind them,” said Greg Williams, president of CUPE 5248. “Workers in long term care are fed up. We’re tired of working extra hours to compensate for understaffing, while also still struggling to make ends meet. Enough is enough.”
This move follows similar action from CUPE locals who are calling for fair wages and for improvements in recruitment and retention in the long-term care sector.
“I genuinely enjoy the work that I do. My fellow union members do, too,” said Williams. “We just want to be able to go into work and have enough staff to care for our clients properly and then go home and be able to provide for our families.”
The next sessions of coordinated negotiations in the long-term care sector will take place November 17 and 18, impacting over 50 CUPE locals across Nova Scotia.