NEWS RELEASE

June 28, 2001

BC nurses appreciate support from Alberta colleagues

Newspaper ad supports BC nurses’ fight against concessions and forbetter compensation. Last March, Alberta health employers withdrewthe same concession demand against their part-time nurses now being made by employers in BC

BC nurses appreciates the newspaper advertisement placed by the United Nurses of Alberta in today’sissue of the Vancouver Sun. The ad begins “Nurses...Alberta desperately needs you!”

Offering support to BC nurses in their efforts to fight concessions and negotiate real improvements tokeep and attract the nurses this province needs, the ad ends “But, if your government refuses to respectyour work and your rights, remember...Alberta and the rest of the country desperately needs nurses!”

“We thank our Alberta colleagues for their support,” says Debra McPherson, president of the BCNurses’ Union. “Their reference to our fight against concessions in BC is especially significant, becausein Alberta, nurses got their new collective agreement in March without any attacks on their casual andpart-time nurses.”

Most significant, McPherson pointed out that in Alberta, health employers came to the tabledemanding the elimination of designated days off for part-time nurses (referred to as “scheduleddays of rest” in Alberta) This is the same demand being made by the Health Employers’Association of BC. But in Alberta, the employers removed this demand from the bargainingtable, and nurses actually received an additional day of rest during each four week rotation.BCNU is proposing these issues be referred to a special joint committee on ways to reduceovertime.

“Alberta health employers appear to understand that during a nursing shortage it is just not on todemand contract rollbacks from the nurses you are trying to keep and attract to care for patients. It’stime for BC health employers and the BC government to wake up to reality and start treating nurses inBC with respect.” McPherson says.

McPherson is pleased that UNA president Heather Smith will be in Vancouver on

Friday to bring support directly to BC nurses. Smith will be here at a news

conference Friday June 29 10:30 a.m. at the BC Nurses Union offices

4060 Regent St., Burnaby.

For more information contact: Debra McPherson, BCNU president cell 604-209-4253 Art Moses, Communications coordinator cell 604-868-4259

Dan Tatroff, Communications officer cell 604 604-868-6865

British Columbia Nurses' Union4060 REGENT STREE T, BURNABY, B.C. V5C 6P5 TELEPHONE (604) 433-2268 FAX (604) 433-7945 TOLL FRE E 1-800-663-9991

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