BURNABY—Health science professionals on the front lines of fighting the COVID-19 pandemic in British Columbia will be paid a daily allowance on top of straight time earnings retroactive to April 1, in an agreement reached with the Ministry of Health.
The $5-million fund was negotiated on behalf of the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association. Health science professionals on the health care team eligible to apply for the allowance include, but are not limited to:
• Respiratory therapists making sure patients have all the interventions and supports they need to survive a serious respiratory illness;
• Laboratory technologists and medical imaging technologists performing diagnostic tests;
• Dietitians, speech language pathologists, and physiotherapists critical to recovery;
• Biomedical engineering technologists who are critical to the maintenance of life-sustaining medical equipment;
• Social workers supporting patients and their families; and
• Licensing and public health inspectors
The fund was created to supplement straight-time earnings by $4 an hour for the month of April. It applies to health science professionals who work in direct patient care and who are not able to be physically distance from patients at work, or who work with material or samples that may be infectious. The $5-million fund will be administered by the affected unions.
Details on how CUPE members can apply to the fund will follow shortly. Please ensure that we have your current personal e-mail address.
The HSPBA collective agreement covers 20,000 health science professionals in five unions: HSA, CUPE, BCGEU, PEA, and HEU.