Union Response: Attack on Health Care Workers

Dear members, 

This afternoon, two NSGEU members working at the QEII Emergency Department were seriously injured in a violent workplace incident. We suspect that some of their colleagues and patients in the hospital will have also sustained physical injuries and psychological trauma as a result of this attack. Our thoughts are with our members who were present at the time of the attack, especially those who were injured, and we are committed to ensure that they are supported during their recovery.

For many years now, frontline healthcare workers have been sounding the alarm about the working conditions in healthcare settings, warning that an incident like this could happen. We have regularly called on health care employers to take action on safety concerns about violence in the workplace, and although some measures have been put in place, today’s incident clearly shows that those measures are not enough, and there is so much more work to be done. We will pressure government and health care employers to act NOW to prevent these types of incidents in the future.

The employers and government must treat this issue with the urgency it deserves. All workers have a right to a safe workplace, and that certainly applies to those who are delivering care in our hospitals. Without a basic sense of security and safety for the workers in health care settings, how can we possibly hope to fix health care for all?

We intend to reach out to members, government and employers in the coming days to collaborate on how we can better support the safety of health care workers and ensure that the obligation to provide a safe workplace is met.

Please reach out if you need support, and remember to be mindful that you do not post any information online that will violate patient privacy.