Shared health nurses vote to reject contract: union

Nurses working at Manitoba's largest hospital have voted against ratifying a new collective bargaining agreement.

The Manitoba Nurses Union announced Friday that members of five of the six health regions have voted in favor of a tentative agreement that would increase overall pay by 2.5 per cent starting in April, 2.75 per cent through 2025 and three per cent thereafter. two years.

The union proposed to the members to ratify the agreement.

The narrower figure was Shared Health, where 57 per cent of members voted against the proposal.

“We've already reached out to the employer and asked the employer to come back to the bargaining table to see how we can resolve this,” said Darlene Jackson, president of the Manitoba Nurses Union, noting a meeting has not been set.

Nurses in Manitoba have been without a contract since April.

If the bargaining committee and Shared Health can't come to an agreement, Jackson says they will move to a strike vote and possible workplace action.

According to Shared Health, it employs about 4,100 nurses at the Health Sciences Centre, Selkirk Mental Health Center and other provincial facilities and services.

A spokesperson told CTV News Winnipeg they are actively working with the union to determine next steps.

“It is important to note that healthcare is an essential service and any work action can only take place after the successful negotiation of an Essential Services Agreement to ensure the availability of healthcare services in the event of a work stoppage,” the spokesperson said. email address.

Meanwhile, Jackson said, while only its Common Health members voted against the proposal, the votes in many other areas of health care were very close.

“Certainly, nurses in this province are sending a message to this government about poor health care,” she said.

“We're still seeing lots and lots of extra work, both mandatory and voluntary. We're seeing agency nurses being used more than we've ever seen in this province, and we're still operating with a shortage. Nurses are still dealing with unsustainable workloads.”

The union shared details of the health authority's vote in an email to CTV News Winnipeg