TORONTO — The Ontario Nurses Association says an arbitration decision that provides "minimal wage increases" is a missed opportunity to improve the retention of staff in nursing homes.
Arbitration decisions have been issued both for Participating Nursing Homes and Charitable Nursing Homes in the province.
According to the ONA, affected facilities in Northwestern Ontario where its members work include Southbridge Lakehead and Southbridge Roseview in Thunder Bay, and Southbridge Birchwood Terrace in Kenora.
The association said RNs and health-care professionals working in for-profit facilities will receive a pay hike of 1.75 per cent in each of three years.
Inflation is currently pacing at an annual rate of 4.4 per cent in Canada.
The ONA said staff working in charitable nursing homes will receive a significantly smaller increase – 1.0 per cent as required by the province's Bill 124.
Introduced in 2019, the legislation caps salary and compensation increases in the broader public sector.
In a statement Monday, the ONA said frontline RNs and other health-care professionals have experienced "horrible conditions" during the COVID-19 pandemic, when it's become even more important to ensure safe staffing levels for resident care.
Staff "have been left absolutely devastated physically and emotionally by what the pandemic and this government have wrought," said association president Vicki McKenna.
She alleged that many employers seem oblivious to how badly workers have been affected.
"For-profit homes are not covered by Bill 124, as this government seems more concerned about for-profit owners than the charitable homes," the statement maintained.
"Yet these for-profit operators sought concessions during bargaining, showing more concern for profit than for safe, proper staffing levels," it said.
ONA has lodged a Charter challenge against Bill 124.
