This letter was originally published on the Long Term and Community Care website.
As Chair of CUPE’s Long Term and Community Care Committee, I am accountable to 5,500 long term care workers across Nova Scotia. I am acutely aware that the decisions we make at the bargaining table impact not only the 3,600 workers on strike across Nova Scotia, but also the thousands of union members and non-unionized workers who will inevitably benefit from anything we achieve at the table.
There exists an understanding in collective bargaining that parties do not bargain in the press. That said, I believe engaging in public debate and discussion about the issues impacted by negotiations is important. We are public workers. We serve the public. Our wages are paid from public funds. Being open and honest with the communities we serve is something we’re in favour of.
However, spreading misinformation, confusing the public, and repeatedly calling for steps outside of the agreed bargaining processes is not how to negotiate, educate, or uphold democratic values. And that is exactly what the government is doing.
In public forums, we’ve seen promises to “fix healthcare” and commitments to the bargaining process. Behind closed doors, we’re hitting brick walls, and being given limitations to what we can negotiate—before we even get to the table.
Over the weekend, in an effort to push for a satisfactory end to this strike for both sides, CUPE suggested an outside mediator.
We specifically chose someone who:
- was available over the weekend—at the government’s insistence,
- has extensive experience mediating negotiations in the health care sector country wide, and
- has worked with the Government of Nova Scotia, upon their own request, in previous cases.
We were disappointed that, instead of a response to our suggestion, Minister Adams released the open letter claiming we had rejected an invitation to return the table. This is patently untrue. Not only is this a lie to her constituents in Eastern Passage, 165 of whom are on strike, but to those she represents province wide—striking workers or not.
Even when the government finally responded to our mediation request—just last night—we were again disappointed to find that, instead of coming with the intent to negotiate, they were only interested in pushing forward their own agenda. They gave us stipulations, requiring that we disregard the Lead Table Protocol their own lawyer signed before bargaining began and violate our own constitution and established collective bargaining procedure by bringing an offer we don’t recommend to the membership.
We are not asking for luxury or special treatment. We are asking for the most basic respect for the work we do: a living wage.
We want to negotiate; we want to end this strike. Instead, we are wasting time battling Minister Adams and Premier Houston bargaining in the press and correcting their constant stream of misinformation—and blatant lies.
Our elected representatives in government are supposed to be accountable to Nova Scotians. Yet, week after week, we continue to see the same talking points in interviews, press conferences, and open letters. We’re told there is no room to move, that we’re asking for too much, that we’re unrealistic.
This isn’t just about paycheques. This is about the people of Nova Scotia. This is about working families and what they need to get by. This is about where they go when they retire, and the quality of care that our elderly deserve.
So, this is our open letter, this is our message to Nova Scotia—it’s the same message we’ve been saying for seven weeks: we want to see meaningful discussion at the bargaining table. We want to get a fair deal for the workers we represent, to end this strike, and to get back to the work we all love.
In solidarity,
Christa Sweeney
Chair, CUPE Long Term and Community Care Committee