FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
North Bay, ON – The union representing nearly 1,000 workers at North Bay Regional Health Centre is holding a public town hall meeting on Tuesday evening at the Davedi Club in response to staffing cuts at the hospital.
“As frontline health care workers, we are deeply committed to our people in our community, which includes our own loved ones. The hospital’s recent decision to cut 40 jobs is alarming at a time when we are understaffed and struggling to maintain a high standard of patient care. We can’t afford more cuts. We are urging North Bay residents to attend our community town hall and participate in our campaign to advocate for better hospital services,” said Mike Turgeon, president of CUPE 139.
Scheduled to speak at the event are union leaders as well as members of the public who have experience at the hospital as patients and caregivers.
According to CUPE’s analysis, instead of reducing staff, the hospital must add 120 workers annually to keep up with growing patient volumes. But the government’s funding plan has constrained NBRHC, leading to layoffs. The North Bay hospital is facing a $5.6 million deficit.
Earlier this week, health minister Sylvia Jones said it was ‘appropriate’ for the hospital to cut positions, which Turgeon said reflected the aloofness of government officials from the experience of frontline workers who are exhausted and burnt out due to understaffing.
“It’s clear that they have no idea about our lived reality in North Bay,” he said. “For them it’s about balancing their books, no matter the consequences for the people here – that person waiting 17 hours in the ER, the elderly patient lying on a stretcher in the hallway waiting to be admitted, the nurse who cries at the end of her shifts because she is so exhausted. They don’t care about us.”
The union has promised to continue its advocacy campaign by mobilizing community members to demand appropriate funding.
“This affects all of us – everyone in this city should be assured that if they fall sick, they can rely on a well-funded, properly staffed hospital. The government through its funding cuts is taking that away from us. It’s unacceptable,” Turgeon said.
Who: Health care workers represented by CUPE 139 and North Bay residents.
Speakers include:
Mike Turgeon, president, CUPE 139
Danielle Shank-Nilsson, member of the public
Aidan Haghgoo, member of the public
Michael Hurley, president of CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions
Natalie Mehra, executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition
Crystalynn Bos, president of North Bay Labour Council
What: Public town hall for North Bay residents
Where: The Davedi Club, 313 Airport Road, North Bay
When: 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, December 2
-30-
For more information, contact:
Zee Noorsumar
CUPE Communications
647-995-9859
