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Talks break down between CUPE 933 and Cape Breton Regional Municipality

Negotiations between municipal workers represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) 933 and their employer, Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM), have broken down and the union filed a request today for the assistance of a conciliation officer with the Nova Scotia Labour Board. “After only four days of bargaining, the employer presented us with their final position even though we were still far apart on some issues. Presenting a final offer at such an early stage is unusual and quite disappointing,” says CUPE National Representative Tammy Martin. “We would welcome the opportunity to return to the table and continuing bargaining,” says CUPE 933 President Daniel Colbourne. “While we were successful with some improvements to contract language, we’re far apart on others.” Some of the outstanding issues include wages, bereavement leave and parental/adoption leave. “Also, there’s a wage parity issue that remains unsettled for our members working as special … Read more…

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Celebrating our nursing teams: LPNs, RNs and CCAs!

National Nursing Week is May 9th to 15th, and we are celebrating the incredible work of nursing teams across the province – including licensed practical nurses, registered nurses, and continuing care assistants. We value the work they do every day, but especially now as they work with the pressures of a staffing crisis and the pandemic. As always, CUPE Nova Scotia will continue to fight for better compensation and working conditions for our members, and against privatization of our “public” health care. To celebrate, CUPE NS is running a radio ad on stations province-wide. Listen to the radio ad

Houston health care plan erodes Nova Scotia’s public health care system

The Houston government’s new health care plan, released today, shows that they are not listening to workers and other stakeholders, and raises red flags that more private, for-profit interests will be allowed to step into the public health care system. “The ‘flexible legislation and regulatory regime’ and ‘person-centred approach’ mentioned in Houston’s plan are code words often seen when governments intend to change our public health care to an unequal, do-it-yourself system. Meanwhile, they relieve themselves of more and more responsibility, deregulate the system, and hand over control to private companies,” says Nan McFadgen, president of CUPE Nova Scotia. “Our health care system is in crisis, and we all know that improvements are needed fast. However, improvements must be made within our ‘public and universal’ health care system,” says McFadgen. “The backlog of surgical procedures, and other treatments, need to be taken care of in the public system, and not … Read more…