Ex-AHS CEO claims NDP interference in resignation letter; AUPE responds
Posted Apr 6, 2016 2:10 pm.
Last Updated Apr 6, 2016 5:29 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Former Alberta Health Services CEO Vickie Kaminski said she was forced to resign from her post because of constant political interference by the NDP Government.
In the November 2015 resignation letter obtained by CBC News, Kaminski said officials including NDP Health Minister Sarah Hoffman prevented her from doing the work that AHS was supposed to do.
She claimed multiple examples of such obstruction, including the NDP getting too involved in bargaining between AHS and the Alberta Union of Public Employees.
Kaminski said the government wouldn’t allow AHS to make a reasonable offer, claiming they were given a mandate of one per cent per year for three years, something far less any other union had received, as well less than what the government gave its own employees.
AUPE President Guy Smith told 660 NEWS however, it’s too early to believe the accusations.
“Not once has Alberta Health Services or Vickie Kaminski (when she was there) ever reached out to us with any offer other than what they presented at the table at the time, so it is hard to believe that AHS had a different mandate then what we saw,” he said. “It’s obviously something we’re having to look into further and we will be taking any necessary action to protect the interest of our members if we find there’s any validity.”
“We saw one per cent on the table replaced by zero per cent, back to one per cent, so it’s been back and forth,” he added. “I think we need to ask some questions of the government and we also need to have our legal team look at what Vickie Kaminski has actually alleged.”
Kaminski’s letter also mentioned Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi regarding a plan to end the City of Calgary providing ambulance-dispatch services.
The change would have AHS provide an independent service like those in the rest of the province and after the last provincial election, Kaminski said Hoffman confirmed the plan would proceed.
She goes on to say that Nenshi was notified that a change was coming, but the very next day, the government stopped AHS from moving forward and that now Hoffman is dealing with Nenshi directly.
To hear Nenshi’s response, click below:
AHS Board Chair Linda Hughes and Interim President and CEO Dr. Verna Yiu issued their own statement to staff:
“Currently, corporate governance at AHS is working very well. We have a new Board that is providing governance oversight, and that has helped foster productive and collegial relationships with Alberta Health, the minister and deputy minister, and their teams. Keeping Albertans healthy is the goal for all of us and this requires a team approach with many partners, including AHS, the AHS Board, and Alberta Health. We value this partnership and team approach and are all working together in a productive and collaborative manner.
The media coverage today looks backwards, and is not reflective of the present day. We have publicly stated how important relationships are to the success of AHS. We are committed to working with all of our partners to build respectful and forward-looking relationships.
We will continue to remain focused on working together as a team, and also on providing quality care to Albertans. We thank you sincerely for all the support to date.”
