Government & Medicine

Danny Williams strikes while the iron's hot

Healthcare workers in Newfoundland throw in the towel after back-to-work legislation puts an end to their walkout

By Deana Stokes Sullivan

The Newfoundland and Labrador healthcare system is feeling the burn. A 27-day strike by 20,000 civil servants, hospital support staff among them, resulted in pan-provincial chaos, including major backlogs in surgeries, clinic appointments and diagnostic procedures.

In the face of stiff back-to-work legislation, Bill 18, introduced in the provincial legislature, the Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Public and Private Employees (NAPE) and the Canadian Union of Public Employees publicly asked their members to return to work on April 28.

Although picket lines did come down, the unions are continuing to condemn Danny Williams' PC government for what they term draconian measures to resolve three outstanding issues in the negotiations, namely wages, sick leave and hours of work for school board support staff.

Bill 18 includes a legislated wage increase of 5% over four years, 3% less than the union's last wage proposal. To trim future costs, government also plans to cut sick leave for new employees by half, allowing 12 days annually instead of the current 24, with a total cap of 240 for accumulated unused sick days, compared to the current whopping 480. However, the level of sick leave for existing employees will remain unchanged. NAPE President Leo Puddister says the union will never agree to this kind of sliding scale � they want one sick leave policy for all employees.

If the workers hadn't ended their strike, heavy fines of up to $250,000 a day were threatened, with an additional $25,000 for each union official or representative. Every employee failing to comply would be dismissed. Premier Williams says he had no choice but to impose these heavy-handed measures given the "very serious health situation" facing the province and the fact that the two sides couldn't reach a negotiated settlement.

Hospitals throughout the province cancelled all nonurgent appointments and surgeries. Emergencies and some cardiac procedures were carried out by essential workers released through agreement with the unions. The striking workers included licensed practical nurses and lab and x-ray technicians.

Dr Susan King, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association described the province's healthcare system during the strike as being like a stretched rubber band, with doctors unable to predict just when it might break. "Every day I get up and thank God that we haven't had any kind of problem here," Premier Williams told reporters outside the legislature during the negotiations.

Health Minister Elizabeth Marshall says her department has been monitoring the backlog in the healthcare system and has asked health boards throughout the province to assess the situation since the strike ended and report back to her. She adds that when the assessments are completed, she's willing to discuss what her department can do to help and what additional funding the boards might need to clear up long waiting lists. "There are hundreds of cancelled surgeries, thousands of appointments missed and hundreds and thousands of diagnostic procedures missed," she says.

The two unions want the government to refer the outstanding issues in their dispute to binding arbitration, but Premier Williams says that isn't an option he'll consider. He says the province, which is faced with a large fiscal deficit, has to hold the line on spending for the sake of future generations. The province's accrued deficit is projected to reach almost $840 million in 2004-05.