B.C. nurses intimidated and threatened by employer during labour dispute: union

The union representing B.C. nurses says more than 5,200 of its members have reported being intimidated or threatened by their employer for not performing non-nursing duties during job action.

The B.C. Nurses’ Union and employer have been engaging in talks conducted by veteran mediator Vince Ready since July 10, and union members reported being “heard” in these discussions.

Union president Adriane Gear explained to CTV News that these non-nursing duties include answering the phone, leaving a health-care facility to pick something up, and emptying garbage bins and dirty linen carts, among other tasks.

Gear said these duties are an important part of delivering patient care, but they don’t require a professional nursing licence to complete. Typically, they would help with these tasks, but she said it’s within the union’s right not to complete them. According to Gear, union-excluded managers and leadership would then take on the responsibility.

“In some cases, they are, but what we’re hearing from our members all over the province is that instead of just doing them, they’re either reassigning them to other health-care workers that are unionized, who already also have really heavy workloads, and/or they are using threats of intimidation,” she said.

The union president said threats included claims the B.C. College of Nurses would be alerted that a nurse hadn’t completed a task they were responsible for.

“In Interior Health, a nurse was threatened if she didn’t clean the stretchers, that she would be sent home, and then she would be reported for patient abandonment,” Gear said. “Abandoning your patients is a huge practice issue and breach of our professional standards, and so it’s that type of thing that nurses are experiencing.”

BCNU members started reporting similar threats to the union not long after job action began, Gear told CTV News, and an online reporting form has since been established to keep track. She didn’t specify when, but she explained these complaints are then made officially to the B.C. Labour Relations Board.

“What we’re alleging is unfair labour practice, because we are in a legal position to participate in lawful job action and the employer is frankly retaliating,” Gear added.

The BCNU represents approximately 60,000 members and has organized picket lines at several hospitals across the province in recent weeks. Job action began on July 2 but paused briefly during negotiations.

On Friday, the union said mediated talks had been productive but added that it was too early to know if a deal is possible.

With files from The Canadian Press