[BC_Labour_E-NEWS] April 22

[bc_labour_enews at bcfed.net]

BC LABOUR NEWS NETWORK
Electronic News from the B.C. Federation of Labour
April 22, 2004
________________________________________________
To subscribe or unsubscribe, follow the instructions at the end of this
message.
PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE.
Messages to this mailbox are processed automatically, and are not read by a
person. If you would like to contact us, send messages to: 
< mailto:bcfed at bcfed.com <mailto:bcfed at bcfed.com >
Help spread the word - forward this e-mail to your friends.
+++|+++
Federation calls on BC Liberals to instruct health care employers to get
back to the table and engage in meaningful bargaining
Vancouver - If employers are serious about avoiding strike action in the
health care sector, B.C. Federation of Labour President Jim Sinclair says
there's still time to get back to the table and engage in meaningful
bargaining. 
"No one wants to see health care services disrupted in BC," said Sinclair.
"Waitlists are growing and the system is already under strain because the
government made it their number one priority to rip up contracts, and pick a
fight with health care workers."
Sinclair made his comments following 72-hour strike noticed issued today by
the Facilities Sub-sector Bargaining Association (FSBA), which represents
43,000 front line health care workers currently bargaining for an agreement
with the Hospital Employers Association of British Columbia (HEABC).
"Our goal is a fair collective agreement," continued Sinclair.  "If the
government is truly interested in patient care, they'll instruct HEABC to
stop firing people and take concessions off the table."
Sinclair says workers have been warning of lower standards and a climate of
uncertainty since the BC Liberals took power, as the government instructed
Health Boards to make do with scarce funding for critical needs like patient
care and wages for front line workers. 
"Instead of concessions for health care workers, employers could stop
handing out big pay raises for executives, new Director's fees for Health
Board appointees and money for fat advertising budgets," said Sinclair.
"Evidently, patient care is not their number one priority."
"Health care workers have borne the brunt of BC Liberal efforts to privatize
and cripple our health care system," said Sinclair.  "Some patients have
already felt the effects of lower standards of care and long waitlists -
conditions created entirely by the BC Liberals in their rush to contract out
public health care jobs."
Sinclair called on all affiliates to fully back health care workers on
picket lines and at rallies.  The B.C. Federation of Labour represents over
450,000 unionized workers in British Columbia.
For up to date information on this dispute, please visit HEU's website:
< http://www.heu.org >
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
To subscribe to E-News, visit: < <http://www.bcfed.com/sub.htm> > If you
want to unsubscribe or change your options (e.g, change your password,
suspend E-News while you are on vacation, etc.), visit your
personalsubscription page at: <
http://bcfed.net/cgibin/mailman/options/bc_labour_enews/ >
To get helpful information, send a message to: < mailto:BC_Labour_E-News
>with "help" in the subject line (no quotation marks).

TO CONTACT THE FEDERATION, send an email to: < mailto:bcfed at bcfed.com > 

opeiu 15