Wednesday, November 1, 2017

First Contract for VON London eHomecare Workers

London, ON—Personal support workers (PSWs) at Victorian Order of Nurses London recently voted overwhelmingly in favour of their first collective agreement with Southwestern Ontario Health Care and Service Workers Union, CLAC Local 303.

This group of PSWs are part of a unique homecare program known as eHomecare, which provides primarily palliative care for those at the end of their life.

The 45 personal support workers joined Local 303 in April, 2017, and were eager to settle a first collective agreement. However, they were met with several challenges at the bargaining table, such as an employer facing financial deficits and dramatic changes to homecare funding in the province.

In a very sensitive, strike environment, this meant that the bargaining committee—in partnership with the employer—had to make thoughtful and difficult decisions in order to preserve their work, while still making improvements.

In the end, the union accepted some concessions, while seeing significant increases to the base wage rate, and crafted a collective agreement suitable to the employees’ unique, and often unstable and inconsistent work environment.

First Contract for VON London eHomecare Workers

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