Home support workers in Baddeck, N.S., vote in favour of strike
The local union that represents the workers cites lack of guaranteed hours, wages, and wear and tear on personal vehicles for the decision.
'After four years out of contract and seven months of bargaining, we're tired of waiting for the Nova Scotia government and our employer to recognize our issues,' said Trish Lewis-Pierrard, president of CUPE 4354, in a Tuesday news release.
Lewis-Pierrard said the service provider only had one new hire last year.
'When I started in 2007, we had 26 CCAs on staff. Now we have 16. That isn't sustainable. New graduates need to want to come to VCHSS for their career and stay, and that's not going to happen with unstable hours and low wages,' she said.
CUPE home support sector coordinator Kathy MacLeod added it is difficult for workers to make long term plans due to fluctuating hours.
'Every week, their hours and pay can change based on the clients. This doesn't happen in any other sector. No CCA in long term care or at the hospitals has their pay change depending on how many residents or patients they see in a day,' she said in the release.
The union is also asking for improved workplace safety language and better protections for CCAs working in the field.
For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
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CBC
a minute ago
- CBC
Manitoba was supposed to get 150 doctors from a recruitment firm. The province got 2
A staffing agency hired by Manitoba's former Progressive Conservative government on a promise to recruit 150 doctors to the province in fact only managed to bring only two. The two-year contract with Canadian Health Labs was initially hailed as a critical piece in Manitoba's efforts to find more doctors, particularly in rural and northern areas, where jobs are typically harder to fill. But the contract expired last month, after the current NDP government didn't exercise its option for a third year. It confirmed to Radio-Canada that only two doctors were recruited under the contract. The fact the company recruited just over one per cent of the 150 doctors promised is frustrating for Breanne Mueller, who has been looking for a family doctor in Steinbach for the 12 years she's lived there. "Where do they find these recruitment companies?" she asked. "Maybe start asking questions if you only have two doctors in two years. Something might be going on." Company under fire Canadian Health Labs, which started recruiting health-care professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic, has come under fire in the Atlantic provinces for charging a $300-plus hourly rate for agency nurses — six times what a staff nurse earns — and invoicing them for daily meal allowances despite telling the nurses to pay for their own food. In New Brunswick, the Vitalité Health Network has tried to get out of its deal with Canadian Health Labs by cancelling remaining shifts for the company's travel nurses before its contract expired in 2026. That province enacted legislation this year to shield the government from any legal or financial penalties regarding its contract, while Canadian Health Labs has responded with a lawsuit. Manitoba's deal with Canadian Health Labs, signed in July 2023 following a competitive request for proposals process, sought to bring 50 physicians to Winnipeg, 50 to northern Manitoba and 50 to other rural communities. When the deal was announced, then health minister Audrey Gordon said she was confident the staffing agency would meet its targets, with penalties in place if goals weren't achieved at certain stages. Eight months later, without a single physician recruited, the company told CBC News it had done a "significant amount of work" in recruiting family physicians to Manitoba. Shared Health, which oversees health-care delivery in the province, said at that point the province had "assigned dedicated recruiters in a number of countries." The province's contract with Canadian Health Labs was valued at up to $5.25 million, but Manitoba will only pay for the two physicians recruited — between $25,000 and $45,000 for each doctor, the government said in a statement. The company didn't answer repeated requests for comment from Radio-Canada. The two physicians recruited under the contract are originally from the United Kingdom and began their practices in Winnipeg. In 2023-24, Manitoba saw a net increase of 133 physicians — the largest on record, according to Doctors Manitoba — but a report from the advocacy group, citing Canadian Institute for Health Information data, said the province still ranks second-last among physicians per capita in Canada, with 219 physicians per 100,000 residents. Steinbach's Mueller said she enrolled in the province's family doctor finder program in 2013. She didn't hear back until 2021. "I was shocked when they [called], because I pretty much forgot that I was even on the list." They told her they still couldn't match her with a doctor, and then asked if she still wanted to be on the list. She removed herself because she believes the provincial program is ineffective. Instead, she's still calling Steinbach clinics whenever people tell her a doctor is accepting new patients. But whenever she calls, she's told they aren't accepting anybody else. "Something's gotta change," Mueller said. She would switch from her Winnipeg physician to one in Steinbach if she could, as any visit to see her doctor takes several hours, when accounting for travel time and the appointment itself. "This community, since I've been here, is just booming. It's crazy the amount of people" moving to Steinbach, a city of 17,000 people that's just over 50 kilometres from Winnipeg. "But the health care still remains the same, if not worse," she said. Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara's office, citing government statistics, said since the NDP government was elected in October 2023, 201 net new physicians have started practising in Manitoba, and an additional 12 have accepted an offer to work. The minister attributed some of this success to the government's new office focused on recruiting and retaining health-care workers. Worried for future shortages The net gain puts the NDP more than halfway toward its election promise of 400 additional physicians. Doctors Manitoba president Dr. Nichelle Desilets said that progress is appreciated, but "we can't rest on our laurels." "In 10 years, our elderly population is going to far exceed what it is right now and also require more health-care resources," she said. Desilets said the best recruitment strategy is an existing workforce of people who love their work and are supported. Progressive Conservative deputy leader Jeff Bereza said the province's deal with Canadian Health Labs "is yet another example of the NDP inheriting a successful PC program, and setting it up to fail." In a statement, Bereza compared the contract with the health-care recruitment mission to the Philippines and the surgical and diagnostic task force, both Tory government initiatives. "The NDP dismantled both and falsely claimed they didn't work. They didn't try," he said. "It's time for the NDP to stop blaming the PCs for their health-care failures, and start delivering on their election promises to Manitobans." Firm hired to recruit 150 doctors to Manitoba brought just 2 8 minutes ago The former Progressive Conservative government hired Canadian Health Labs in 2023 to bring 150 doctors to Manitoba over two years. The recruitment firm finished its work this summer, after bringing two doctors to the province.
CTV News
30 minutes ago
- CTV News
Former top general says reviewing medals for Afghan vets a ‘no-brainer' for Carney
OTTAWA — A former top general who led the military during the Afghanistan conflict is urging Prime Minister Mark Carney's government to revisit the files of soldiers who served there to see if any of their awards should be upgraded to the Victoria Cross. Rick Hillier said that despite the failure of recent attempts to trigger such an independent review, he thinks the odds are better now that Ottawa is bent on revitalizing the Canadian Armed Forces. 'I am more optimistic right now. I think for the government, this should be a no-brainer,' Hillier, chief of the defence staff from 2005-2008, told The Canadian Press. Hillier is part of the civil society group Valour in the Presence of the Enemy, which has been pressing Ottawa to consider awarding veterans of the 2001 to 2014 Afghanistan campaign the country's highest military honour. He said commendations awarded to Afghanistan veterans should be examined in light of new information to see whether any of them qualify for the Victoria Cross. 'Let's do an independent review, not committing to anything, which is right and appropriate,' he said. 'And if we should find that one or two or more individuals are deserving of the Victoria Cross, what a shot in the arm that would be for our soldiers and aviators and sailors.' In 2022, former Conservative leader Erin O'Toole pushed to have a the House of Commons endorse the creation of a review panel that would take a second look at military decorations. Hillier said it may have been a strategic error to have the former leader of the opposition bring that proposal forward, since it 'almost guaranteed' that the governing Liberal party would oppose it. The issue is being brought to the fore again through a parliamentary petition sponsored and endorsed by Liberal MP Pauline Rochefort which also calls for a review panel. Twenty Stars of Military Valour — Canada's second-highest military award — and 89 Medals of Military Valour were awarded to soldiers who served in Afghanistan. No serving Canadian soldier or veteran has been awarded the Victoria Cross since the Second World War. The Government of Canada says just 81 Canadians have ever been awarded the Victoria Cross — 4 from the Boer War, 64 from the First World War and 13 from the Second World War. Gen. Walter Natynczyk, chief of the defence staff from 2008 to 2012, ordered a review in 2012 of the 20 Stars of Military Valour awarded for the Afghanistan conflict. Ottawa has resisted calls in recent years for another review. Department of National Defence spokesperson Andrée-Anne Poulin said in an emailed statement the awards process is designed to be insulated from political influence and public pressure. 'All honours for the Afghanistan mission have been processed and the time limits for such nominations (two years between the action and the nomination for Military Valour and Bravery Decorations) have now elapsed,' she said. 'These time limits ensure events are judged by the standards and values of the time, are compared with other contemporary examples, past decisions are not second-guessed and history is not reinterpreted.' Many have cited the case of Jess Larochelle of North Bay, Ont., as one that deserves a closer look. The late army private's supporters maintain he should be awarded the Victoria Cross for his heroic actions in holding off a 2006 Taliban attack on an observation post after sustaining serious injuries. Hillier, who chaired the committee that awarded Larochelle his Star of Military Valour, said details of his story that came to light in the years since make his case worth a fresh look. 'I don't think we made a mistake, but having done something doesn't mean that it's cast in stone forever and ever,' he said. Hillier said new details about 'how badly injured' Larochelle was during the battle, and the fact that he volunteered to take the position, should merit a reappraisal of his case. Retired lieutenant-general Omer Lavoie suggested the Department of National Defence may be reluctant to reopen awards files because it would be a complex project that would stir up grim memories of the conflict — and because it could quickly give rise to claims of unfair treatment if veterans of other wars aren't also honoured. Hillier also observed that Canadians tend to be hesitant about lavishing praise on individual acts of greatness. 'We in Canada have forever been loath, reluctant, slow to recognize the very top acts of courage and valour,' he said. 'Throughout our history, we seem to have this sort of group-thought process sometimes, where it keeps people all in one level.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 13, 2025. Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press
CBC
44 minutes ago
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Bad cell service, with dropped calls and garble, continues to frustrate many P.E.I. residents
Social Sharing "Absolutely terrible" is how Darlene Jurkowski describes cell service in her community of Chelton, just west of Borden-Carleton on the southern shore of Prince Edward Island. "You cannot call a person without getting cut off, you sound like a robot half the time, you can't understand what they're saying," Jurkowski told CBC News. Like many P.E.I. residents and tourists, she is living with dropped calls, unsent texts, or just no service at all. Jurkowski helps run a family construction and excavation concern, so she needs a reliable way of making business calls. "We're paying high prices for cell phone services that we can't use," she said, estimating her Bell contract costs her about $400 a month. Gary Smith owns a cottage nearby and has a rust-proofing shop. He had hoped to spend time at his cottage while still booking appointments and dealing with customers, but the poor cell service is getting in the way. "It's just impossible up here," he said. "I can hear them, they can't hear me, or vice versa." 'If there's ever an emergency...' People in the community say it's a safety issue too. They worry about elderly relatives being unable to reach them, and wonder what will happen if they ever need to call 911 for help. "We have kids. We have elderly people who live near us. Are we going to be able to make that call?" said Chelton resident Sam McKendrick. McKendrick has young children and also works from home some days. She worries about not being able to do her job properly, and not being able to get calls from her daycare. "If there's ever an emergency, can they get a hold of me while I'm here?" she said. Just west of Charlottetown, the Town of Cornwall has problem spots too. "We need to be able to communicate in times of emergency," said Coun. Cory Stevenson, who said bad cellphone service has been a dominant issue among constituents. The town is working on changing its bylaws to make it easier for companies to construct cellphone towers, but they don't have a new one yet. Stevenson said the approval process falls under federal jurisdiction but the town wants to reduce "red tape" on the municipal side. Minister says she 'can relate' Belfast-Murray River MLA Darlene Compton is the provincial minister of economic development, innovation and trade, the department dealing with P.E.I.'s cellphone service issues. Compton lives in one of the areas of eastern P.E.I. that also has bad service. "I understand and can relate to the frustration of all Islanders," she said. "We're very well aware and concerned." We need to have the buy-in from the companies. My understanding is that there really isn't a business model there for them to improve service... — Darlene Compton Compton said the province set aside $2.5 million late last year to help build more towers, and officials are talking to service providers. Initially there wasn't much interest from them, she said, but she hopes that will change. "We need to have the buy-in from the companies. My understanding is that there really isn't a business model there for them to improve service, so we as a province — and through the federal government — are going to have to find a way forward," said Compton. A study has been done to identify the worst areas for reception, and the provincial government plans to meet with cellphone service providers again in the fall. Compton said details of who exactly would use any new infrastructure and how it would be paid for still have to be worked out. In the meantime, she encourages people with bad service to complain to their cellphone companies and the CRTC, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. In the end, she said the federal government might have to step in because lacking cell service is a safety issue. Cell companies respond CBC News reached out to a number of cellphone companies about the problems people are reporting. In a statement, Eastlink wrote: "We have no reports of broad mobile service issues across the Island and remain committed to continuous improvements."
