BC's Health Employers End Agreement Aimed at Addressing Chronic Shortage of OR Nurses at VGH

December 11, 2015

Three weeks after Vancouver Coastal Health signed a groundbreaking agreement to pay nurses at VGH's Jim Pattison OR a $5/hr premium to address a chronic nursing shortage, HEABC has abruptly cancelled the deal.

BCNU is extremely disappointed and worried about the impact this will have on the nurses and the patients that rely on them for their surgeries.

BCNU will continue to search for solutions to address the shortage of nurses and the impact that is having on patient care and nurses across our province. However, we must have real commitments from the health authorities to find and implement solutions. If an agreement is not reached we will resolve the issue in front of the three-person arbitration panel scheduled for Friday, December 18, and January 7-8, 2016.

Progress with the government and health authorities is being made on resolving some outstanding issues related to the failure to implement our last contract, so this cancellation of an agreement is a worrisome and frustrating upset for BCNU and our members.