Photo courtesy of CUPE
CUPE health care workers rallied outside the office of Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith to protest provincial health care spending cuts.
The demonstration came amid concerns that government funding reductions could have a serious local impact.
PTBOTODAY.ca spoke with Michael Hurley, president of the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions.
The Financial Accountability Office of Ontario warns that hospitals across the province could face a total reduction of 2,450 staffed beds if funding does not increase. Hurley says this should be a major concern.
According to the union, projections suggest Peterborough could lose roughly 115 nurses and personal support workers by 2027-28, while the regional hospital may see 32 staffed beds eliminated.
In response, MPP Smith says no information was actually submitted to his office, and the information/recommendations being put out by the union were not included in its pre-budget consultation submission put forward by President Fred Hahn. Smith finished by saying he’d be happy to have a conversation with leadership, but they’d need to take the initiative to have that dialogue.
(Written by: Jordan Mercier)
