BURNABY—The community health sector continues to suffer from systemic challenges arising from staffing shortages, workload, and mental health issues and needs more support in these areas, CUPE’s Health Care Presidents Council concluded at their quarterly meeting held on Thursday.
In addition to local updates and a sector bargaining review, Council members discussed a report from Local 15 member Benita Spindel, CUPE’s Enhanced Disability Management Program (EDMP) representative. Following Spindel’s report, which raised some of the challenges of her rising case load, the presidents discussed the status of the EDMP and explored ways to better support the program in the future.
Council members also held a longer discussion about raising more public awareness of sector challenges through broader consultation with constituent unions of the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) and Community Health Bargaining Association (CBA).
In bargaining, no further talks have been scheduled for the HSPBA table after Thursday’s session. The CBA also wraps up bargaining this week, with two more sessions scheduled in June.
Also at the meeting, HCPC chair Tuesday Andrich (CUPE 1004) thanked retiring CUPE National representative Lee Mossman for his service as sector coordinator and welcomed CUPE National representative Andrew Ledger, former HCPC chair, as the new sector coordinator.