Health care union solidarity appears to crumble
NSGEU maintains members need to have a choice in what union they are a part of
Solidarity among the unions fighting changes to Nova Scotia’s health care system appears to be crumbling.
Late Wednesday afternoon, leaders of three of the health care unions in the province - CUPE, NSNU and Unifor - issued a release reaffirming their support of a bargaining association model unions proposed to the provincial government in response to health district restructuring. In other words, nurses could continue to belong to more than one union but there would be one collective agreement to cover them all.
"We will re-state this loud and clear - we are confident that the bargaining association model is still the best option for health care workers in this province," said Lana Payne, Unifor Atlantic regional director. "This remains the only option that avoids chaos and disruption in the health care system and the only option that doesn't pit worker against worker and union against union."
Noticeably absent from the release was the NSGEU.
President Joan Jessome, outside Province House for the rare Wednesday evening sitting of the House, said her union did not break ranks with the others. She said she wasn’t a party to the release.
Jessome took a swipe at the other three for not calling for votes to allow members to choose which union should represent them. She singled out the Nova Scotia Nurses Union for particular criticism.
“Just by the design of the legislation they will end up with every single RN and LPN in the province,” she said. “So yes, I am critical of that because that union should be asking for a vote and so should Unifor and so should CUPE. The bargaining association is not there. The premier said no. I don't know how many ways you have to hear no before you understand it's gone."
CUPE disagrees, saying it's the only way to go forward.
"Among the unions, there was never any consideration that there would be carve-outs of existing bargaining units or runoff votes," said Danny Cavanagh, president of CUPE Nova Scotia. "The unions' Bargaining Association is the only true reflection of democracy, and the only way all of our members can have their rights protected."
Jessome said her top priority are her members.
“I am speaking out for a democratic right to choose,” she said. “There are 24,000 health care workers impacted by this legislation and from four different unions, not one of them is going to have a choice to decide which union they belong to.”