March 19, 2019
Green Party Leader says good faith bargaining cannot happen in the courtroom
Fredericton – Green Party Leader, David Coon, calls on Premier Higgs to get back to the bargaining table and to negotiate in good faith with nursing home workers, after the government filed an appeal Monday afternoon to continue to block the workers right to strike.
“I don’t understand why the Premier is wasting his time with another appeal to the courts when he should be sitting down at the negotiating table to resolve this. He needs to bargain in good faith, and he can’t do that from a courtroom,” says Coon.
“We are talking about caring for our most vulnerable citizens. These workers do not want to strike, this is the last option available to them after successive governments have failed to fairly recognize the work they do. The labour shortage in nursing homes will not be addressed overnight but increasing care time for residents and increasing wages will go a long way in terms of worker recruitment and retention.”
Kevin Arseneau, MLA for Kent-North, has spent time with workers at protests in Rogersville, in Fredericton and in St-Louis-de-Kent, “the workers want to be able to provide the best care possible for the residents and with current working conditions they are struggling to do that. It is our job as politicians to look out for our most vulnerable. It is time to invest in our senior care and in the people who work with them!”
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