Health Care Bargaining Unit Essential Services

Your committee continues to prepare for bargaining for the Health Care bargaining unit. As you may recall from our earlier update in November, we have begun the essential service negotiation process.

What are Essential Services?

As a result of legislation passed by the past Liberal provincial government, the NSGEU now bargains as part of a Council of Unions. Along with Unifor and CUPE for the Health Care Council, we collectively represent approximately 7,500 health care workers working in a wide variety of roles at Nova Scotia Health (NSH) throughout the province and the IWK. We are also now compelled by legislation to work with the employer to establish an Essential Services staffing agreement prior to any legal strike action taking place.

So far, union representatives have met with the employers five times to try and work out essential services staffing agreements. We have made progress, and have five additional dates scheduled on January 22, February 7, February 22, March 6 and March 26.

At the same time, your bargaining committee representatives have been meeting to develop bargaining proposals. That work is now complete, and we have reached out to the employers to schedule bargaining dates.

We will advise you once bargaining dates are scheduled, and of any updates on essential service agreements.

Please keep a close eye on your email over the coming weeks and speak with your coworkers to ensure they are receiving updates from the union, as well.
If you have questions or concerns about the bargaining process, please contact a member of your committee as follows:

Local 100 Veronica Drake, v.burke87@gmail.com
Local 100 Bria MacDonald, bria.mac@hotmail.com
Local 100 Shaun Naugle, naugle.shaun@gmail.com
Local 122 Peter Perry, pperry@nsgeu.ca
Local 122 Natalie Steele Quinn, natalie.steele@gmail.com
Local 195 Uta Berthold-Brush, utacbb1@gmail.com

Negotiators:
Lynette Johnson, ljohnson@nsgeu.ca
Kelly Ritcey, kritcey@nsgeu.ca