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The Risk Ahead

We know from experience how much health care can suffer when the wrong party is in government. For sixteen years, the BC Liberals (now called BC United) government cut health care and fired health care workers. They had a negative impact on the cost of living, housing, education, the environment and more.

They’ve done it before, and they’ll do it again. A victory for either the BC United or the BC Conservatives is a serious threat to the progress made by HEU members over the past seven years.

From 2001 – 2016, the BC Liberals (now BC United) changed the laws and ripped up contracts, firing nearly 10,000 health care workers.

Under the BC Liberals,

  • Many health care workers’ wages were cut by 15 per cent;
  • Health care workers excluded from job security and other protections in the Labour Code; and
  • Health care was privatized faster and deeper than anywhere in Canada.

The BC Liberals also slashed taxes for the wealthy and profitable corporations while raising fees on regular families, and cutting the public services British Columbians rely on.

Under the BC Liberals:

  • 71 hospitals were cut, closed or downgraded;
  • 267 public schools were closed;
  • MSP fees doubled, ICBC rates and Hydro rates increased, tolls were imposed on the Port Mann and Golden Ears bridges, and the HST was introduced;
  • Housing costs increased by 130 percent, and now the same politicians oppose the speculation and vacancy tax on empty homes owned by real estate speculators.

The BC Conservatives are a new party led by John Rustad. Rustad was in the former BC Liberal government and was hand-picked by Premier Christy Clark to cut services and increase the cost of living for everyday families.  Now Rustad is proposing even more extreme cuts to health care.

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Worker-friendly government

Since forming government in 2017, the BC NDP is undoing the damage the BC Liberals caused, and is building a better province for everyone.  In 2018, the government reversed privatization of health support services bringing 10,000 health care workers back into the public system. These major changes recognized the value of our members, restored our member’s rights, and addressed the failure of the BC Liberals’ privatization agenda. But there’s still a lot more to do.

Since the election of a worker-friendly government, HEU members have seen some important gains. Here’s a brief summary of what the current government has done so far:

Ended contracting out of housekeeping, food service and other support service jobs.  Over 5000 workers received wage increases, a pension and better benefits.

Ended contract flipping in health care by restoring job security for workers under the Labour Code.

Improved wages in seniors’ care during the pandemic by bringing them up to the provincial standard rate. Some workers’ wages increased by $7 an hour overnight.

Created the Health Career Access Program (HCAP) that trained and hired 7,000 care aides andcommunity health workers within two years.

Funded a historic Facilities Bargaining Association collective agreement including a 14 per cent raise for members, and a process to address BC Liberal wage cuts and pay equity rollbacks from the early 2000s.

Expanded the reversal of privatization by bringing protection services workers back under health authorities, and providing further training to HEU members as relational security officers.

Allocated $20 million in funding for mental health supports for health care workers in the Facilities, Community and Health Sciences subsectors.

Introduced five paid sick days for all workers under the Employment Standards Act.

Rolled out a rural retention initiative program to help attract and keep health care workers in 74 rural and remote areas of the province.