The president of Unifor Local 1359 says there has been a good rapport so far between the union and the long-term care and retirement homes in the city during the COVID-19 crisis.
Cathy Humalamaki says issues are discussed on a weekly basis and staff shortages have been addressed by measures that has included making use of RPN students and bringing back retirees.
Humalamaki says there are also plans to redeploy hospital staff if needed…

Humalamaki says there is enough supply of personal protective equipment at the facilities to equip front-line staff for a week or two but that would change if an outbreak occurred…

PSW’s at long-term care and retirement homes are provided with two surgical masks per shift and N-95 masks are used in areas where there are airborne infections.
The process of testing all staff and residents of long-term care facilities in the city got underway last week and will be completed in the very near future.
Humalamaki points to two local facilities that set a day aside last week to complete the testing…

Local 13-59 has over 18-hundred members with most being in the health care field covering an area from Wawa to Elliot Lake—the members include RPN’s PSW’s and paramedics as well as service workers.
Humalamaki says all of their members are meeting the requirement of working in just one facility and that is costing them financially even with the additional hours some have picked up.
She says fair compensation for PSW’s has long been a sore point and needs to be addressed.