November 2020

Today marks the first day of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. Especially during a pandemic, where mental and physical abuse has increased against women, girls, LGBTQ2+, and gender diverse individuals. It’s also harder for these individuals to access the organizations and services they need.

SEIU Healthcare stands with all unions that represent paramedics in support of the recommendation of the EMS Section 21 subcommittee to establish itself as a separate, stand-alone committee.

Mike Wheeler has been in the healthcare industry for the past 16 years, in both the hospital and long-term care sector. He works at the Lennox and Addington Hospital in the maintenance department. He shares how only some colleagues in the same department with the same classification received the pandemic pay, and the rest were excluded.

SEIU Healthcare recently profiled a member from our region 3. Jamie Pitre has been a medical radiation technologist for the past 16 years. Many healthcare workers were shocked when medical radiation technologists were left out of pandemic pay. Read more about her story!

SEIU recently profiled a member from our region 1, who is a rehabilitation assistant who works at Thunder Bay Regional Hospital, Krista Henson. She talks about the important role rehabilitation assistants play in the health system and how the government is making uneducated decisions that are greatly impacting hospitals.

November 20, 2020 is Transgender Day of Remembrance. It is a day to we honour the trans, two-spirited, and non-binary people whose lives have been taken away too early from transphobic violence. 

Please take 30 seconds to tell the Ontario Government that we need to give Developmental Support Workers mandatory WSIB coverage immediately. Simply attach your name to the pre-written letter below, which will be sent to both your local MPP and Premier Ford.

Erin Smith-Silk is an animal attendant at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in the Comparative Research department. In Erin’s small department, pandemic pay became the elephant in the room, as only some workers received the temporary wage increase. She shares how the government’s decisions have greatly affected her workplace and the hospital sector.

Cara Thompson has been a Pharmacy Technician for the passed 21 years. She dives into the significant and diverse roles the pharmacy department plays in our health system and community. Cara also shares how frustrated she was when the pharmacy department was never added to the pandemic pay lists released.

For Corinne Kershaw a paramedic for the County of Lambton, it was not about the pandemic pay compensation, it was the lack of knowledge the government had when making changes to the healthcare system. Read more about her story.

Karl Penney has dedicated 35 years to providing happiness and nourishment through his passion for cooking. For the first 30 years, he served in the Canadian Royal Navy as a Drill Sargent and cook. For the past five years, he has been preparing meals for the residents at Chartwell Empress Kanata.

Ontario government must rethink and reset COVID-19 plans and allow union partners to join the pandemic response table