The B.C. Nurses’ Union (BCNU) said it has launched job action across the province after issuing a 72-hour strike notice Monday.
It said nurses will no longer perform non-nursing duties, and will refuse all non-essential overtime hours.
BCNU said its job action will escalate in the coming days if the province doesn’t return to the bargaining table with an acceptable offer.
“This is not the outcome nurses wanted,” BCNU President Adriane Gear said in a statement Thursday. “Throughout this process, nurses have been clear about what is needed to strengthen the profession and stabilize our health-care system. We have remained ready to bargain in good faith, but the government has not responded with the urgency this moment demands.”
Nurses voted to reject a tentative agreement reached with the province in May.
BCNU said the government’s bargaining mandate failed to address nurses’ concerns, “including a meaningful general wage increase and solutions that improve nurse retention and workplace safety.”
For essential services such as nursing, the B.C. Labour Relations Board can set minimum staffing levels that must be maintained during job action.
The Health Employers Association of B.C. said on Monday it was available to meet with the union at any time to find a path forward.
Health Minister Josie Osborne said she respects the decision by union members to take job action, and that people will continue to get the health care they need.
