This Thursday, bargaining sessions between the unionized nursing home workers, as represented by CUPE NB Council of Nursing Home Unions (NBCNHU), and the employer association (NB Association of Nursing Homes – NBANH) have ground to a halt.

The government has barely moved from its staggeringly low wage proposal of June 2023: a 6% increase over 5 years, about $1.24 an hour for most workers, much less than the cost of a loaf of bread or a small coffee.

The employer association has confirmed that Government, which funds the operations of nursing homes, refuses to provide them with a monetary package that would not be insulting to present to the workers in bargaining.  Sharon Teare, President of the NBCNHU, stated: “Government still insists on imposing a “single-digit increase proposal” over the whole new contract, and the Association cannot in good conscience bring that to the workers.”

The Association was fully willing to bargain with the union, but called off the talks this Thursday as Government still insisted on its single-digit proposal.

According to Statistics Canada, average annual inflation for NB stood at 3.81% for 2021, 7.26% for 2022, and 3.67% currently for 2023. “With a single-digit increase, we are not even catching up in any way for the ground lost to inflation”, said Jason St-Onge, Vice-President of the NBCNHU. “Why is this government saying workers and residents are not worth it?” he added.

“Wages were already unacceptable before the pandemic; now it’s noticeably worse. Our province’s massive budgetary surplus should be put to good use, like helping seniors and those who care for them”, concluded Teare.

The NBCNHU represents close to 4,600 CUPE members working in 51 nursing homes throughout NB. The NB Nursing Home workers’ contract expired in October 2022.