SASKATOON — Service Employees International Union-West President Barb Cape said it is not only the doctors and nurses who are leaving or have left the province but also other healthcare support staff who have experienced mental health issues.
Cape and other SEIU-West members joined the three-day 2024 Saskatchewan Federation of Labour Convention from Wednesday to Friday, Oct. 23 to 25, at TCU Place, where Lauri Johb, a healthcare worker, was re-elected as SFL president.
United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1400 member Marilynne MacFarlane was elected secretary-treasurer after Kent Peterson chose not to run for another term. MacFarlane also holds the same position at UFCW.
Cape said SEIU, where Johb is also a member, represents licensed practical nurses, continuing care assistants, people who work in trades and maintenance, environmental and dietary services administration staff, and laboratory technicians across the province.
“So, it is not just registered nurses leaving the province. It is all of those classifications. The problem that we have is that people are burnt out. The number of mental health issues for frontline healthcare workers is on the rise,” Cape told SaskToday.
“They love working in health care. They are professionals. They have gone to school. They have dedicated their lives. They have the institutional knowledge to keep our systems running. But this government has taken advantage of that. They believe that we're interchangeable.”
She believes healthcare workers also need a raise in their wages to keep up with the cost of living, especially those who live and work in rural areas, as more tax dollars are needed and not privatization to fix the system.
“From start to finish, from birth to death, we have a disinvestment problem, and we need to put the dollars, our tax dollars, towards fixing that problem. The answer isn't private services because we already pay taxes for this [healthcare]. We should be able to rely on those taxes going to the public services we decided we wanted, and that's healthcare,” added Cape.
“The Scott Moe government does not realize that healthcare workers need raises. We are not talking a couple of pennies here and there. Healthcare workers need a raise to keep up with the cost of inflation. To bring them to a fair and quality standard of living. We all know many nurses are leaving the province regarding health care. People who work in rural and remote communities are seeing an even greater impact because their cost of living is even higher than in the cities.”
She then lamented the disinvestment that lasted almost two decades and needed to change. The provincial government formed after the election on Monday, Oct. 28, should hit the ground running and examine the whole healthcare system, from the patient to the healthcare workers.
“Saskatchewan was the birthplace of Medicare, and in Swift Current, where the first sort of Medicare-based facility and care services were offered, we don't have enough licensed practical nurses. We have operating rooms there, but we're not using them because we're not building up the whole healthcare team. We're not building the entire nursing team to work to their full scope,” said Cape.
“Quite frankly, it's going to create some problems. Can we continue to provide home care services in Maple Creek? Can we continue to provide x-rays and lab services in Mankota or East End? I don't. I don’t know. I used to be able to tell you without a doubt that we could do that. At this point, though, I don't know. It's a big question mark we've got. Whatever government takes over on Oct. 29th, their job is going to be a tough one.”
She then criticized Scott Moe and the Saskatchewan Party, saying their promises were weak because they did not understand the frustration of the province's working people, especially the healthcare workers in the public sector.
“I do not think they know how bad it is in facilities. I do not think they realize how many people use the food banks and still work in healthcare. I do not think they know that people must work so much overtime to afford to live, pay their bills, and pay the rent. I do not believe this government understands what working people are going through. I do not think they care,” Cape added.
“I think they are courting working people's votes in a way. That is just so cowardly and so manipulative. I do not believe that working people are buying it. I think they [workers] see through the sham. I believe they have waited 17 years, certainly within SEIU-West. Working people have waited 17 years for recognition and the notion that they understand how bad the healthcare system has gotten.”
