Newmarket Health Centre worker Alexandria Boungnaseng said she has an ailing mother to take care of.
Working at the long-term care home, she said she values her eight-hour afternoon shifts so that she has time to take care of her mother. She said her mother is waiting to get into a nursing home, but it might still be a couple of years before that can happen.
That is why she is pushing back against York Region’s plans to have her and other employees start rotating shifts, which could be 12 hours.
“I cannot do 12-hour shifts,” Boungnaseng said. “My first priority’s my mom."
Representatives from CUPE Local 905 are holding information pickets outside of Newmarket Health Centre and Markham’s Maple Health Centre. The representatives are pushing back against an expected policy change from York Region in October. It will require workers to rotate through 12 and eight-hour shifts. The workers are picketing July 24 but intend to picket throughout the summer.
Boungnaseng said employees all around are upset.
“Everybody’s stressed, she said. “The quality of care is still there, but there’s a lot of tension between staff, between the management. I think it’s better if they leave it the way it is.”
York Region director of corporate communications Patrick Casey said the region is implementing a change to meet the legislated system average of four hours of direct care per resident per day "and enhance resident care with a consistent, stable workforce."
"This work will support our ongoing dedication to ensure continuous improvement of quality care and to provide an enjoyable work experience, promote staff wellness and increase stability," Casey said.
Casey said the region engaged an external consultant to develop the schedules, with staff able to choose what works for them in order of seniority.
He said they have engaged with staff who do prefer the idea of a 12-hour shift, which creates more days off and longer breaks.
"We understand change can be challenging for some and we value the feedback shared by our staff," Casey said. "The schedule changes are designed to benefit both our residents and our staff."
Another employee, who asked not to be named for fear of reprimand, said they wanted to protect it for their family.
“I can’t be gone 12-hour shifts for myself. I can’t rotate,” they said. “I will never have a life outside of here … Everybody’s stressed and everybody’s upset. I don’t think there’s one person in here that comes to work happy anymore.”
CUPE Local 905 said their collective agreement should protect them from such a shift change unless a majority of those impacted approve. It said they conducted a poll among affected members last month, with 85 per cent opposed. But the region intends to proceed regardless, CUPE said.
“The members have clearly said no to this, and they are still proceeding with this,” CUPE local 905 vice president Nina Brown said.
NewmarketToday will update this story as more information is made available.
