Nova Scotia health authorities arbitration continues
The province has passed legislation that will consolidate 9 health authorities into one
An arbitration hearing continues today that will determine how thousands who work for the IWK Health Centre and Nova Scotia's nine district health authorities will be represented after the health system is re-organized.
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Earlier this fall, the province passed legislation that will consolidate nine health authorities into one and ordered the assignment of 24,000 nurses and staff into one of four unions — amid heated protests by many.
Arbitrator James Dorsey has been brought in from British Columbia to divide up nurses, licensed practical nurses, support staff (cleaning and cooks), clerical staff and healthcare workers (lab technologists and porters) among four unions.
CBC's Jennifer Henderson is at the hearing today.
The unions include the Nova Scotia Government Employees Union with 11,867 members, the Nova Scotia Nurses' Union with 5,028 members, the Canadian Union of Public Employees with 4,653 members and Unifor with 2,289 workers.
The provincial legislation allows each of the four unions to represent only one class of workers, a requirement that could strip the NSGEU — the largest union with 40 per cent of the province's nurses — of 9,000 of its members.