The health-care workers who work alongside registered nurses in Alberta have voted overwhelmingly in favour of a strike if they do not reach a deal on a new collective agreement.
In a news conference at the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) headquarters in Edmonton on Wednesday, president Sandra Azocar revealed 98 per cent of members voted in support of a strike mandate.
About 11,030 of 15,650 eligible members participated in the five-day vote that started Oct. 30.
Although the results have not yet been certified by the Alberta Labour Relations Board, Azocar called the number overwhelming and the result of workers being “fed up with stagnant wages and unsafe working conditions that hurt workers, patients and Alberta’s health-care system.”
The earliest the union could serve 72-hour strike notice is Nov. 17.
“We’re ready for that,” Azocar said.
First, the union and Alberta Health Services (AHS) are scheduled to return to the bargaining table with a mediator Thursday through Sunday.
LPN compensation one of major sticking points
The majority of workers represented by the union are licensed practical nurses (LPNs) and health-care aides (HCAs), but also rehabilitation centre workers, psychiatric aides, client care assistants, physiotherapy assistants, operating room technicians, orthopedic technicians, and more. Collectively, they are called nursing care workers, or auxiliary nursing workers.
They have been bargaining for a new collective agreement since March 2024.
“Unfortunately, we are very far apart,” AUPE negotiator Kate Robinson said. “The employer is offering 12 per cent over four years in terms of wage increases, and they even still have some rollbacks on the table, specifically to wages.
“We are simply seeking wages that represent the work that is being done in the workplace by these health-care workers. It’s been a long time without any wage increases that reflect the scope of practice for both health-care aides and LPNs.”
As AUPE put it, LPNs in Alberta are “doing 84 per cent of what RNs (registered nurses) do, but only getting paid 60-some per cent.” As such, AUPE is asking that LPNs get paid 84 per cent of an RN salary.
They expect the scope of practice to also broaden for HCAs, which are set to become regulated in February. Alberta’s HCAs will be the first in Canada to be licensed.
“Regulation is a good thing. It’s important, but it has to be compensated to make sure that folks have the money to pay for training and (are) able to keep their skills up,” Robinson said.
Increasing wages would also improve recruiting efforts and reduce a 10- to 12-per cent vacancy rate across the health-care system, AUPE believes.
In a statement, Finance Minister Nate Horner acknowledged the critical role of LPNs, but said, “a key consideration that must be considered is the fact that they do not have the same education or extensive scope of practice as RNs.”
He also called the union’s request for a reduction of annual hours to 36.81 hours per week unfeasible.
“We deeply value the dedication of Alberta’s nurses, but right now, reducing hours would make it harder to deliver the health care Albertans depend on.”
In total, AHS estimated AUPE’s proposal would cost $2 billion.
“I encourage the union to reconsider its proposal and return to the bargaining table with an offer that is reasonable and fair,” Horner said.
‘Ready for anything that comes our way’
If nursing care workers strike, they would take provincewide job action but ensure essential services are maintained, according to Robinson.
“Our goal is to get a deal. Our goal is not to find ourselves on the picket line,” she stressed.
Asked about the Alberta government’s use of the notwithstanding clause to force striking teachers back to work, Azocar said, “Our union has been preparing for this situation for a long time…. And we know the political reality that we’re facing. I think they played that card, they showed their cards, and we’re ready for anything that comes our way.”
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