Saturday, August 1, 2026

When Waiting Becomes the Injustice

By Erica Mommersteeg, Representative, Cambridge Member Centre

At Cedarcroft Place Retirement Residence in Stratford, Ontario, healthcare workers have now spent more than two years waiting for fair compensation. Not because their case is unclear. Not because solutions don’t exist. But because the system designed to resolve disputes in healthcare is taking too long to function.

That should concern all of us.

Cedarcroft is an 85-bed retirement home where approximately 60 staff provide around-the-clock care to seniors. These workers support residents with daily living, safety, and dignity. Yet many of them have been earning minimum wage while doing work that is essential.

In January 2024, CLAC began representing these employees and quickly made progress on improvements to working conditions. However, when negotiations turned to wages, as they often do in healthcare, talks stalled.

At that point, the next step should have been clear. Across Ontario, disputes in healthcare are commonly resolved through arbitration under the Hospital Labour Disputes Arbitration Act (HLDAA). The trade-off is straightforward: workers give up the right to strike in exchange for a timely, neutral process that protects both them and the people in their care.

At Cedarcroft, even that step was delayed.

A disagreement between CLAC and the employer about whether HLDAA applied had to be decided by the Ontario Labour Relations Board. A hearing was held in June 2025. The decision, which supported CLAC’s position, did not come until March 20, 2026.

For months, workers were left in limbo. Wages were frozen. Turnover increased. Care continued, but under growing pressure.

Only after that HLDAA ruling could the case move forward to interest arbitration. And again, the system slowed things down. Backlogs meant further waiting—months to secure a hearing, and more time still waiting for a decision.

An arbitration hearing was finally held in June 2026, two and a half years after the collective agreement had expired. A decision is still pending.

CLAC has continued to support workers and press for progress, but this situation points to a larger problem that cannot be ignored. This is not an isolated problem. It is a structural one.

The current system is built on a promise: that disputes will be resolved without disrupting care. But that promise only holds if the process is timely. When it is not, the burden shifts quietly but significantly onto workers.

Wages will eventually be adjusted retroactively, but much of what matters most is not. Since retroactivity is only awarded on wages, retroactive improvements to all other compensation (benefits, premiums, pensions etc.) are never recovered. For workers already earning low wages, waiting years is not just frustrating, it is financially unsustainable, and the impact doesn’t stop there.

Delays contribute to turnover. Turnover increases pressure on remaining staff, and that pressure inevitably affects the stability and quality of care that residents receive.

In other words, a system meant to protect care is under strain, putting it at risk.

By the time Cedarcroft workers receive wage increases covering 2024 to 2026, their agreement will already be expired. That is not a sign of a system working. It is a sign of a system falling behind.

If we are serious about supporting healthcare workers, and about maintaining quality care for seniors, then timelines in arbitration are not a technical issue. They are central to whether the system is fair and sustainable.

Cedarcroft’s experience highlights a broader challenge in the healthcare system: when processes take too long, the burden doesn’t disappear; it shifts onto workers, workplaces, and ultimately the quality of care.

Cedarcroft is not unique. It is an example of what happens when delay becomes normalized, and it raises a simple question: how long should essential workers be expected to wait?

CLAC continues to advocate for timely, fair resolutions that support both healthcare workers and the people they serve.

For more information on the arbitration system and CLAC’s ongoing efforts to improve it, read: The Waiting Game (December 2025 Guide).

When Waiting Becomes the Injustice

You might be interested in