The union backing Canada’s public employees is launching a nationwide effort to transform long-term care into a publicly funded, universal health care system in the midst of a pandemic it says has exacerbated problems in facilities across the country and led to the deaths of thousands of residents.
The union backing Canada’s public employees is launching a nationwide effort to transform long-term care into a publicly funded, universal health care system in the midst of a pandemic it says has exacerbated problems in facilities across the country and led to the deaths of thousands of residents.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees — which represents 65,000 long-term care nurses, aides and dietary, cleaning and administrative staff — is ramping up previous calls to overhaul Canada’s system in a new campaign intended to educate the public and capture the attention of federal politicians.
“Right now, long-term care in Canada is a patchwork system with no national standards,” said CUPE national secretary-treasurer Charles Fleury in a news release. “It’s time to fix that.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately hit long-term care facilities across Canada, with approximately 80 per cent of deaths related to the disease occurring in seniors’ homes. Some employees are dealing with shortages of protective equipment and low wages, while others have contracted the disease themselves.
The Canadian Armed Forces has also sent more than 1,250 personnel to assist seniors’ homes in Quebec and Ontario,