Ontario Nurses Association Local 67 Providence Care Hospital

02/19/2026

Yesterday ONA Provincial President Erin Ariss, RN, spoke at a Queen's Park media conference hosted by Ontario NDP. She called attention to recent Ontario’s independent Financial Accountability Office reporting warning of a $10.7 billion shortfall in health care funding by 2027-28 if the FordNation government continues on its current path of cuts and underfunding.

Health-care professionals in Ontario already work under unsafe and unmanageable conditions, where they are constantly understaffed and as a result, face violence in their workplaces every day. This projected shortfall in funding will mean still fewer funded hospital beds, and fewer nurses and health care professionals, even as Ontario's population is increasing.

Ontario’s health-care system cannot sustain any more cuts. More than 60% of Ontario hospitals had a deficit in 2025. Some hospitals were forced to take out loans, paying millions of dollars in interest to private banks. And last year, nearly 700 front-line ONA positions were cut, further weakening our public health-care system.

In her remarks, Erin made it clear that Doug Ford's cuts are putting patients and health-care workers at risk. And she is demanding that this government invest in public health care, close the $10.7 billion funding gap, and invest in the safe staffing ratios the province needs.

02/19/2026

“The Ontario government says they’re hiring thousands of new nurses, but I have yet to see that, especially in Northern Ontario. In fact, I’m seeing more nurses leave the profession than I’m seeing coming in.

It’s a slap in the face that male-dominated careers are being compensated more for the risks they face, while we are expected to face guns, knives and physical violence.”

It’s time to protect nurses. Make safe staffing a priority.
https://nursestalktruth.ca/

02/19/2026

02/19/2026

02/15/2026

On behalf of the ONA Board of Directors, we are pleased to announce that health-care professionals at Ontario Health atHome have voted to be represented by ONA. This is an important professional victory, and we are proud that they have chosen a union that understands health care and is prepared to stand up to tough opponents.

Two years ago, the Ford government ordered the 14 Ontario Health atHome (OHaH) branches to be merged into a single entity under Ontario Health. At that time, workers across the province were represented by several different unions. The Ontario Labour Relations Board subsequently ruled that the more than 8,000 workers would be divided into two bargaining units: a “professional” bargaining unit representing about 6,000 workers and a “clerical/support” bargaining unit representing about 2,000 workers. In the vote for the professional bargaining unit, ONA won the support of health-care professionals.

“We are incredibly proud and thrilled to have earned the trust and support of thousands of Ontario Health atHome health-care professionals,” said Erin Ariss, ONA Provincial President. “OHaH staff were clear about what they wanted: a union with a proven record of winning strong wages, delivering results at the bargaining table, and showing up in workplaces to fight for members.”

To read the full media release please visit the link below: https://ona.org/news/20260213-ohah-healthcare-vote/

02/15/2026

The evidence is clear – Canada needs safe nurse-patient ratios.

This week, the CFNU hosted the first meeting of the National Council for Nurse-Patient Ratios Implementation.

Read more: https://nursesunions.ca/cfnu-hosts-first-meeting-of-national-council-for-nurse-patient-ratios-implementation/

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Les données sont probantes : le Canada a besoin de ratios infirmières-patients sécuritaires.

Cette semaine, la FCSII accueille la première réunion du Conseil national pour la mise en œuvre des ratios infirmières-patients.

Pour en savoir plus : https://fcsii.ca/la-fcsii-accueille-la-premiere-reunion-du-conseil-national-pour-la-mise-en-oeuvre-des-ratios-infirmieres-patients/

02/11/2026

“It’s time the federal government acts to safeguard our health system. Nurses and health-care workers point to chronic understaffing and unsafe workloads as the most urgent challenges in health care in our country. Policy choices that funnel public dollars towards privatization compound these pressures.

The consequences are already being felt at the bedside.”

As CFNU President Linda Silas explains in her latest opinion piece, we know that privatization is not the answer to the health care crisis, and investments in public health are essential to protecting the timely and equitable health care Canada needs. Funding decisions made now will determine whether Canadians will continue to have access to public health care in practice, not just in theory.

The CFNU is calling on Health Minister Marjorie Michel to enforce the Canada Health Act and protect Canada’s public health care system.

Find the full opinion piece on the risks of private, for-profit health care in the Hill Times here: https://linktr.ee/CFNU

02/11/2026

02/11/2026

02/04/2026

ONA is raising serious concerns about staffing decisions being made by Southeast Public Health (SEPH), particularly around the layoff of the public health unit’s sole nurse practitioner.

“It is a dangerous decision to lay off the only nurse practitioner, who provides specialized, essential care to the most vulnerable and underserved members of the community,” said ONA President Erin Ariss, RN. “Given the ongoing instability within SEPH, this layoff reflects the troubling nature of recent decision making. We are demanding that the employer immediately reverse this decision.”

ONA is also calling for clear and consistent communication for both staff and residents within the SEPH catchment area regarding the availability of services at six locations beyond March 1.

In November 2025, staff were advised that some would be reassigned to different worksites by March 1, 2026, and were instructed not to schedule services at six offices after that date. The affected locations include Almonte, Gananoque, Kemptville, Napanee, Perth, and Trenton.

At a SEPH Board of Health meeting on Wednesday, January 28, concerns were raised about how service levels for residents would be maintained after March 1.

Following the meeting, some SEPH staff were told they could resume booking certain consultations at the identified offices after March 1. However, this guidance has not been communicated clearly or consistently to all staff.

ONA is urging the employer to release a comprehensive plan well in advance of March 1 that clearly outlines which programs and services will continue at the satellite offices. “We are concerned that reassigning staff to other locations will increase travel time, reduce time available for direct patient care, and ultimately result in fewer services for residents,” said Ariss.

“Given the employer’s past failure to keep its Board of Health fully informed, I question whether the Board is even aware that SEPH’s only nurse practitioner is being laid off,” Ariss added.

See the full release: https://ona.org/news/20260204-seph-np-layoff/