Frontline healthcare workers in Alberta vote 59% to reject tentative deal

Healthcare workers in Alberta have rejected a tentative agreement with Alberta Health Services in a province-wide vote.

The Health Sciences Association of Alberta (HSAA) said Wednesday 78 per cent of its members cast ballots between Aug. 28 and Sept. 10.

The union says 59 per cent of members voted to reject the deal.

“Today, HSAA members are sending a message. Frontline health-care professionals are rejecting a deal that does not do enough to support them,” said HSAA President Mike Parker.

HSAA represents more than 22,000 highly specialized health-care professionals covered by the agreement, including paramedics, diagnostic imaging specialists, mental health and addiction counsellors, respiratory therapists, pharmacists, physiotherapists, dietitians, social workers and more than 200 other professions.

Parker said the vote reflects the reality of a health-care workforce under immense strain.

“We face a dangerous shortage of health-care professionals in this province. Albertans see it every day in longer wait times, overwhelmed emergency rooms, delayed surgeries and therapies, and the prolonged agony of waiting for care,” Parker said. “Our members are living these challenges alongside patients, often facing unmanageable workloads, short staffing, and burnout that is driving professionals out of the system.”

The union says its not calling a strike vote at this time.

However it is asking AHS and the government to present a better wage offer.

“I believe we can still reach a fair agreement that reflects the respect they deserve and the pressures they face,” Parker said. “But we need a commitment from the government to invest in the people who make health care possible.”

HSAA says it will be talking to members in the coming weeks to support next steps.

In a statement, Minister of Finance Nate Horner expressed his disappointment with the union’s decision.

“I note that unlike other failed ratifications involving a mediator’s (third-party) recommendations, the tentative agreement was based on terms and conditions proposed by HSAA and recommended by the union to their members,” he said.

“It is now up to the union to determine why the ratification vote failed regarding their own proposed deal.”

Horner says the province is ready to return to the table “when the union, and its bargaining team, gain a better understanding of their members’ interests and priorities.”

The bargaining unit covers HSAA members working for Alberta Health Services, as well as agencies and corporations such as Acute Care Alberta, Recovery Alberta, Primary Care Alberta, Assisted Living Alberta, Cancer Care Alberta, Emergency Health Services, Lamont Health Care Centre and Bethany Nursing Home of Camrose.