Hospital workers should not be expected to suffer undue financial hardship
Letter from Pat Collyer, Local 575, to the Associate Minister of Health
Dan Newman, MPP, Scarborough Southwest
Associate Minister of Health and Long Term Care
Queen's Park
March 31, 2003
Dear Dan,
As the local president of OPSEU Local 575 The Scarborough Hospital I am writing to ask you to support all health care professionals and workers during the current SARS crisis. The membership of my local nor any other hospital workers should not be expected to suffer undue financial hardship because of this situation.
At this time due to the necessary closure of outpatient clinics and elective surgery at most hospitals our part time members are having shifts cancelled due to decreased workloads in some departments and are being told that they will not be compensated fully for the loss of work.
This is sending a very poor message to the staff when we all know that when the crisis is over hospitals will need these staff to deal with the back log of cancelled examinations.
For those of us working in healthcare professions and experiencing the shortages of trained professionals and the excessive workloads we already normally experience this is an insult. It once again shows how little our skills and dedication to our patients is appreciated by our employers and this government.
I would ask that you and Minister Clement deal with this issue as soon as possible before we find that more healthcare professionals decide to consider their options and leave the province for greener pastures.
Sincerely,
Pat Collyer
President
OPSEU Local 575
The Scarborough Hospital
Health and Safety Index
