Thousands Calling for Ontario Nurses to be Exempt from Bill 124

Tuesday, 25 May 2021 07:21

Thousands of people have signed an online petition calling for Ontario nurses to be exempt from Bill 124.

ONTARIO - Over 54,000 people have signed an online petition supporting Ontario nurses in their fight to be exempt from Bill 124.

It caps their wage increases at one-percent, which is less than inflation.

Julia Pressey is an ICU nurse and she has been working the frontlines throughout the pandemic. She's very frustrated with the current situation.

"We understand management's hands are tied because they can only do what the government has given to them. Its just a lack of support from our members of parliament, when you reach out to them and they don't return your calls or e-mails, you feel like you're fighting an endless battle with no support."

Pressey says nurses have been put through the wringer during the pandemic.

"I have colleagues that have left the bedside to pursue other avenues of nursing. It's not what they ever dreamed they would be doing but given the situation, they're going for what's better for them."

You can sign the petition online here.

The Province meanwhile maintains this bill is not intended to single out nurses and they're incredibly grateful for the contributions of Ontario’s healthcare workers and the critical role they have played throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Press Secretary for the Office of the Minister of Finance & President of the Treasury Board Sebastian Skamski says Bill 124 does not just apply to nurses.

"To be clear, Bill 124 applies to over one million people working in Ontario’s public sector, spanning numerous different sub-sectors. This legislation is universally applied across the Ontario Public Service (OPS) and the Broader Public Sector (BPS), including employees in schools, colleges, universities, the provincial government, hospitals, and provincial police. Any suggestion that it is discriminatory or targets any demographic group is totally baseless."

He adds that it is inaccurate to suggest that Bill 124 caps wages at 1% annually.

"As an example, nurses working in hospitals move through a salary grid and see their wages increase as they gain more experience."