New 4-year contract lacking in key areas, some Manitoba nurses say

Some Manitoba nurses aren't happy about a new, four-year contract ratified last week, citing a wage gap between full- and part-time staff and not enough action to address issues around burnout and safety. 

Most nurses voted narrowly in favour last week — except for those working at Shared Health, some of whom work at Health Sciences Centre. The Manitoba Nurses Union announced Friday that 51.2 per cent voted "yes" to the deal and 48.8 per cent voted "no." 

"Being ratified at 51 per cent isn't a success," said a part-time nurse who works at St. Boniface Hospital, who CBC News isn't identifying because they fear potential workplace repercussions. 

"The joke is that 'Hey, we should take jobs in Shared Health now because at least they get to have a chance at getting a new [better] contract.'"

All other public-sector nurses have agreed to a contract with a 2.5 per cent general wage increase starting April 1, 2024, a 2.75 per cent increase for 2025, and a three per cent increase each for 2026 and 2027.

The agreement includes additional payments for full-time nurses, and part-time and casual nurses who work up to full-time hours.

They will receive a $12,000 per year incentive starting in April 2025, once the existing COVID-19 incentive lapses. The incentive will be a two-year trial and would last at least the remainder of the contract if it results in decreased overtime hours and reliance on private agency nurses.

Voting breakdown via the Manitoba Nurses Union:

However, the St. Boniface nurse said that the payment scale incentivizes working full-time hours — more hours in the case of part-time workers — when what nurses are looking for are better rotations that prioritize an improved work-life balance.

They also said the rotations, put in place before the pandemic, are "just terrible" and a reason why less people want to work full-time hours.

"The wage disparity now that is between the full-time nurses and part-time nurses is right in our faces," they said. 

"To nurse somebody properly needs a team effort, so to know that the person besides you who has the exact education, they're getting more per hour, I think that was really kind of a kick for us nurses." 

Another nurse CBC News spoke to, who works primarily in the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, said the deal fell short of what their expectations were.

The nurse, who CBC News is also not identifying, said their colleagues were feeling hopeful because the NDP government promised that real change was coming.

"And I don't think that's what's going to happen from this contract."

The WRHA nurse also felt the contract doesn't address burnout and prioritizing full-time hours too much, even though some nurses cannot do that.

"This was the first contract that really kind of separated nurses and gave preferential incentives to some and then not to others."

The nurse is also worried about the nurse-to-patient ratio and violence in the workplace. 

'Good and adequate agreement': union president

Manitoba Nurses Union president Darlene Jackson said the bargaining committee believed the contract would deal with the use of agency nurses and she thought it was a good and adequate agreement.

Jackson said the full-time incentive is similar to the existing COVID-19 one and that every nurse has access to it, they just have to "work the hours to get it." 

In terms of addressing burnout, there will be a mental health unit above Blue Cross specifically dedicated to nurses. She also referenced a committee that exists to address safety issues.

MNU is currency waiting to hear back from Shared Health, but the possibility of job action looms for nurses there, she said. 

The St. Boniface nurse said everybody they worked with was "shocked" the contract went through. 

Both nurses also expressed their displeasure at the speed in which the contract was agreed to. They both said they were told by the union the contract was the best they could negotiate. 

Jackson said the bargaining committee felt this was the best deal they could get from the government. 

"There was no talk of 'you have to take this deal because you're not getting anything better,'" she said. "What the message was is 'we believe this is the best deal we can get at our bargaining table,' so that was the information provided to members."

Meanwhile, the WRHA nurse said while Shared Health's nurses rejecting the contract may cause divisiveness, they applaud them for "standing their ground and for recognizing what was missing out of this contract."