Who Will Take Care of Me?

NANETTE ARADI IS A CARE AID at NG Nair, a home for adults with disabilities in Langley, BC. She and her fellow Local 501 members at the home are about to receive layoff notices when their contract comes to an end soon.

But it’s not just their jobs that Nanette and her fellow members are worried about. It’s the residents they’ve come to know and love over the years who concern them. They’re worried about the impact that suddenly losing their caregiver will have on residents. The disruption caused by a change of even a few of the regular staff members serving the clients at the home will be felt throughout the facility, affecting the lives of the residents and their families.

“These are some of the most vulnerable people in society,” says Nanette. “They know us and trust us. I can’t imagine what they’ll go through if all of a sudden there’s brand new staff that no one recognizes. I’m shocked that the government would allow this to happen.”

AT ISSUE IS A POLICY the BC government enacted in 2002, known as the Health and Social Services Delivery Improvement Act, more commonly referred to as Bill 29, which radically altered the way private healthcare facilities are run in the province. Prior to Bill 29, if a certain healthcare facility was unionized, employees had the right of recall in the event there was a change of contractor. After Bill 29, a contractor could end the contract to run a facility, and all the employees would be laid off—with no rights whatsoever to be recalled.

The result is that a new contractor comes in and hires new employees. If any of the employees from the previous contractor wish to remain at the facility, all of their accumulated seniority, vacation allotment, sick days, shift preferences, and wage rates start over again.

Bill 29 makes it extremely difficult to unionize in the private healthcare sector in BC. It allows contractors to dump their union contracts if they don’t like what’s been negotiated. In fact, there are documented examples of some facilities switching contractors numerous times since Bill 29 came into effect.

THE EMPLOYEES AT NG NAIR approached CLAC in the fall of 2015 and sought to unionize with Local 501. The issues of most concern to them were scheduling, the lack of a transparent posting process, and wages and benefits. They had no employer-paid pension plan whatsoever.

After Local 501 was granted certification following a BC Labour Relations Board supervised vote, negotiations for a first collective agreement commenced almost immediately. Ten months of hard bargaining followed, and a contract was negotiated with the help of a mediator and was ratified by both sides.

The agreement was only in place for a few months when H&H Total Care Services Inc., which runs NG Nair, served notice of their intent to drop their contract with the facility. Close to 30 Local 501 members working at the home were suddenly in limbo. When the contract comes to an end, all employees will receive layoff notices—with no certainty of being hired back by the new company that will run the facility.

“This is very disappointing,” says Sonia Ginjaume, a long-serving cook at the home. “I had an opportunity to go to work at another facility, but I chose to stay here. Then the employer told us we’re all getting laid off.”

Cynthia Vasquez has been at NG Nair for close to two years working part time as a housekeeper. Although not as deeply affected by the layoff notice because of her relatively short time at the home, she feels for her fellow members.

“I’m sad for my co-workers who have been here a lot longer than me,” she says. “I’ll be okay, but I know a lot of people whose only job is here. They need this job to make it.”

BILL 29 HAS BEEN IN EFFECT for close to 15 years. Its negative impact continues to reverberate throughout the private healthcare sector all over BC.

Whether the government of the time intended for it to happen or not, another big consequence of the bill has been the large discrepancy in compensation paid by private facilities versus those included in the Health Services and Support Community Subsector Association. These facilities are fully funded under the sector agreement.

A number of facilities operating prior to 2002 were grandfathered into the association, which bargains jointly with the provincial government and has protection against layoffs in the event of a contractor change. No new facilities are permitted to join the association.

This has created an uneven playing field that is unfair to the thousands of hard-working employees of private healthcare facilities in BC who earn less and have fewer benefits. Many of them struggle to make ends meet.

Individuals working at a facility in the association make upward of three dollars more per hour than those doing the same work in a private home. As well, the benefits, pension, overtime provisions, sick days, and vacation allotment are far superior to those being offered in private facilities.

With the recent election in BC, it’s time for the government to take a hard look at Bill 29 and the harm it has caused. It’s time to end the disparity between the private sector homes and those in the association.

This disparity will only continue to widen without government intervention, specifically, more funding for private-sector healthcare facilities. The status quo is simply unacceptable, not only to Local 501 members, but to all those working in BC’s private healthcare sector. The residents they care for deserve better than to wake up one morning to a sea of strange faces, wondering, who will take care of me?

MARY’S MANOR

The first nongovernment funded private healthcare home in BC was opened in 1987 by Mary Williamson. Mary is a Local 501 member and steward who works for We Care, Vernon, as an RN.

“At the time, there was an 18-month waiting list for people trying to get into funded care homes,” says Mary. “I approached Interior Health and said I wanted to open my own facility, and they said there was no need for one. I just shook my head and went out and opened one anyway.”

Mary bought a property with a house and went about renovating it to make it suitable for residents. She even jackhammered part of the garage herself to make room for an extension. When all was said and done, Mary’s Manor opened in 1987 with six residents.

Mary’s Manor is still operational today, although Mary no longer runs it. She’s been an RN for a remarkable 56 years, and even though she’s almost 78 years young, she still logs thousands of miles each year to provide home nursing care throughout the Okanagan region.