NSGEU vows to take health merger bill fight to Supreme Court
Crowd gathered for meeting followed by candlelight vigil
The Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union held an emergency meeting in Halifax on Tuesday night to discuss their next move as the leaders vowed to take the fight over the health merger bill to the Supreme Court of Canada if necessary.
Ray Larkin, a lawyer with the NSGEU, called the bill "diabolical" as he explained the legislation to the hundreds of members gathered at the World Trade and Convention Centre. Some of the union members booed as the proposed law was discussed.
The Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union, which represents 11,867 workers in the province's health-care system, is the largest union that will be affected by the health merger legislation.
The unionized members are upset the provincial government does not plan to give health workers a vote on union representation as it consolidates the health authorities and reduces the number of bargaining units from 50 to four.
"This is my comfort, this is my family," said Annette Nicoletti, a licensed practical nurse in the NSGEU.
"I know where to get my support and I know how they're structured. I don't want to change and it's my choice."
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Jason MacLean, the vice-president of the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union and the one who was arrested during a heated protest outside Province House on Tuesday morning, was greeted with a standing ovation as he walked into the meeting room.
Joan Jessome, the union president, referenced MacLean's arrest and said some police officers were being "very aggressive" during the protest.
She said the union would challenge the bill all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada if needed.
An hour into the meeting, reporters were asked to leave the room. Union members emerged after the closed door session and close to 1,000 members gathered at Grand Parade in downtown Halifax and marched to Province House where they held a candlelight vigil.
They walked in silence and held signs that read, "RIP Democracy."
Inside the legislature, the law amendments committee continued to hear from the 39 speakers who signed up to have their say on the bill. The committee sat until 11:35 p.m. on Tuesday and is set to resume at 8:00 a.m. on Wednesday.