March 30, 1999
(Treasury Board)

The following statement was issued today by Anna Thistle, President of Treasury Board. It was also read in the House of Assembly:

I rise on a matter of great urgency to the people of our province. Government has been informed by the Newfoundland and Labrador Health and Community Services Association - the health care professionals who manage our hospitals, nursing homes and provide community nursing - that unless nurses return to work as soon as possible, the health care system will not be able to adequately care for patients and the public. They have formally requested "...that government take the necessary steps to ensure that nurses have ceased their work stoppage and return to the workplace as soon as possible."

Government has a responsibility to protect the health of our people. That must take priority above all else. Government is responding to this urgent request. We call upon this honourable House to do so as well.

We take this step reluctantly. Government has worked hard to reach agreement with the Newfoundland and Labrador Nurses' Union. We had a tentative agreement in October 1998 which nurses turned down by a narrow margin. We have been responsive to nurses' concerns about workload. My colleague, the Minister of Health and Community Services has announced important new measures to address workload concerns.

Government has been seeking to negotiate intensively with the nurses' union since March 16. We have had the assistance of a conciliator. But, we were not able to meet face to face with nurses' union representatives since last Wednesday morning. The nurses' union has been unwilling to move on compensation issues. On Sunday evening, the nurses' union demanded 14 per cent, that is double the seven per cent, be given to all other public employees. When we said we could not agree, the nurses' union withdrew from conciliation. Essentially, the nurses= union brought negotiations to an end.

Later on Sunday evening, the nurses' union indicated publicly that they want the seven per cent increase, plus a two dollar per hour premium equivalent to a further 10 per cent. In other words, the nurses' union said that they want a 17 per cent increase, almost two and a half times more than other public employees.

Government has tried diligently to reach agreement. We have not been able to do so. More importantly, the health care system has run out of time. Nurses are needed back at work with other health care professionals to protect the health of patients and the public. We have reached a point where, for every additional day that treatments are postponed, lives are put in jeopardy. The association has told us that: "It is becoming clear that the abilities of individual organizations to continue to meet the levels of services identified in their contingency plans are becoming compromised. Examples include postponement of medical procedures such as cancer care and surgeries and deferral of service provision to clients requiring home care such as palliative care." We must act now.

For that reason, government is now bringing forward a bill entitled An Act to Provide for the Resumption and Continuation of Health and Community Services. This legislation provides for nurses to return to work, and for government to put in place a settlement that is based on the tentative agreement negotiated with the nurses' union last fall and that is consistent with settlements reached with other public sector unions. It will provide for seven per cent over 39 months.

The Health and Community Services Resumption Act requirement for nurses to return to work and the penalties for failing to do so are in line with recent federal back to work legislation (Bill C-76). Also similar to the recent federal legislation, the act legislates a settlement to the dispute. This is done rather than going to binding arbitration under the Public Service Collective Bargaining Act.

Government, and more importantly the taxpayers of our province, cannot afford increases of more than seven per cent for public employees. Every additional one per cent increase for public employees costs $16 million. On the weekend, the President of NAPE, Austin Deir, made clear that anything government gives to nurses must be given to NAPE members. He indicated he expects wildcat strikes by NAPE members unless any wage increase above seven per cent given to nurses is also given to NAPE members.

To give nurses the 17 per cent increase they have demanded and to provide the same increase to other public employees would cost $160 million a year or $800 million over five years. The provincial government does not have this money. We would either have to raise taxes - for example, raise personal income tax by 20 per cent - or add $800 million over the next five years to our province's $6.5 billion direct debt. I don't believe the people of our province want us to do either.

In 1990, the government of the day gave unsustainable increases to nurses and a year later rolled back those increases. This government believes it is far more responsible to provide pay increases that can be sustained.

Thirty public sector collective agreements, providing for seven per cent over 39 months, have been negotiated for more than 30,000 government employees. Seven per cent is as good as or better than other public sector wage increases across the country. Seven per cent is fair for nurses, fair for other public employees and fair to the taxpayers of our province.

What is fundamental today, is the need to act now to ensure that the health of patients and the public is not compromised. Government is taking action that is both necessary and responsible. We have been advised by the Health and Community Services Association that swift action is needed because "once that point of crisis is imminent, all organizations agree that the maximum time frame in terms of their ability to continue to provide essential service is 24 hours." I call on my colleagues in the House of Assembly to give speedy consideration to the legislation so that the health of patients and the public can be adequately protected.

Thank You.

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BACKGROUNDER

Back to Work Legislation

Bill 3, an Act to Provide for the Resumption and Continuation of Health and Community Services, provides for nurses to return to work and for government to put in place a settlement of the dispute based on the tentative agreement arrived at by the Newfoundland and Labrador Nurses' Union, the Newfoundland and Labrador Health and Community Services Association and government on October 6, 1998.

Section 3 of the legislation ends the strike and provides that it not be resumed. Section 5 requires nurses to return to work.

Section 6 empowers the Lieutenant-Governor in Council to put in place terms and conditions of employment for nurses; the terms and conditions are those in the October 6, 1998 tentative agreement. Recent federal back to work legislation (Bill C-76) contained a comparable provision.

Section 7 imposes penalties ($100,000 a day for the union, $10,000 a day for officers of the union and $1000 a day for employees) for failure to comply with the legislation. Recent federal back to work legislation (Bill C-76) provided for maximum fines of $100,000 a day for the union, $50,000 a day for officers of the union and $1000 a day for employees.

Section 8 provides that this legislation applies notwithstanding the Public Service Collective Bargaining Act. This means that the dispute does not go to binding arbitration, as would otherwise be provided for under the Public Service Collective Bargaining Act.

1999 03 30                                      2:20 p.m.