There is currently a vacancy on the SEIU-West Executive Board for members that work for the Community Based Organizations Sector.
Pinned
Virtual town halls (VTHs) were scheduled for the evenings of May 27 and 28 to update SEIU-West members about SAHO bargaining and answer bargaining questions. Unfortunately, the VTH on May 27 ran into major technical glitches. We apologize if you were one of the hundreds of members whose experienced this failure. We were not satisfied that the supplier of the VTH platform would be able to properly fix these problems in time, so we decided to cancel the May 28 VTH.
You may have noticed there hasn't been an announcement about bbqs for the summer yet.
The SEIU-West First Nations, Métis and Inuit Committee (FNMIC) is hosting a contest to design an image for orange shirts that the committee provides yearly to members. Submit your design to enter to win a $100 Co-op gift card.
Disclaimer: the following information is based on what SEIU-West found on publicly available federal government websites. This information is subject to change as it comes from outside sources. We will update this post further as information becomes available.
Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) provide valuable services to people in our cities and towns.
In this video, members of the CBO Committee of Saskatchewan have come up with a series of questions for people to ask candidates and party representatives as they reach out to gain support during the 2020 provincial election.
This Op-Ed was written by SEIU-West President Barbara Cape and submitted to various papers in Saskatchewan on October 20, 2020.
SEIU-West is proud to recognize October 20, 2020 as Pharmacy Technician Day!
Our members who work as Pharmacy Technicians are crucial to our public health care team; they prepare, check and distribute medications and pharmacy supplies to ensure patients are safely supplied their prescribed predications or over the counter medicines. They also support accurate patient information with other health care professionals.
Pharmacy Technicians assist Pharmacists, patients, residents and clients requiring medications and demonstrate their valuable contribution to health care outcomes. They work to progress our communities to better health, and we thank them for all their incredible efforts each and every day!
To celebrate Pharmacy Technician Day, SEIU-West asks that you to participate in the Pharmacy Technician Day Contest! Simply tell us how a Pharmacy Technician has helped you/your family – email [email protected] by October 27, 2020 for your chance to win some awesome prizes!
CLXTs are vital to the success of quality health care. By performing X-ray exams, Electrocardiograms (ECG) and Holter monitoring, these hard working health care technologists ensure patients receive the best care available.
Celebrate Healthcare Security and Safety Week October 11-17!
Health care security is unique. Our public Security Officers work on the front lines in some of the largest, busiest, most complex care facilities in the province--like Laurie, who works at Royal University Hospital. They are trained, certified, skilled professionals who provide for the safety and protection of the facility and grounds, as well as clients, staff and public utilizing the facility. They are a key part of the health care team, serving medically complex and socially disadvantaged populations.
In recognition of their incredible work, we ask that you email and tell us why those who work as in-house Security Officers are an important part of the health care team. Email your answers to [email protected] for your chance to win a Visa gift card!
Deadline to apply: October 23, 2020.
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Celebrate Medical Device Reprocessing (MDR) Week October 11-17!
Health care providers who work in MDR are a vital part of the health care team – their role is especially on everyone’s mind during a pandemic as they protect and strengthen patient safety by ensuring health care equipment is dependable, sterilized, and effective. They inspect, assemble, clean, and decontaminate health care equipment – they must be highly organized and pay attention to each little detail in their work.
SEIU-West members, like Christina who works at Saskatoon City Hospital, received their Sterile Processing certification and each day set up equipment for cleaning and for ordering stock when supplies run low. They deal with a wide variety of instruments and equipment, so no day is the same. Christina and the rest of her MDR team make sure all the health care equipment is safe for future patients.
In recognition of their incredible work, we ask that you email and tell us why those who work in MDR are an important part of the health care team. Email your answers to [email protected] for your chance to win a visa gift card!
Deadline to apply: October 23, 2020.
October 15, 2020--FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Release: Wynyard & Lanigan are #DoneWaiting for Fairness
Wynyard & Lanigan – SEIU-West members who work as health care providers are demonstrating today in these communities to remind the public that they remain without a collective agreement. Frustrations have heightened as negotiations with the Saskatchewan Association of Health Organizations (SAHO) have stalled out largely due to the Sask Party government’s refusal to fund a fair deal.
On September 15, SEIU-West President Barb Cape sent a letter to the leaders of the Saskatchewan Green Party, Saskatchewan Liberals, the Saskatchewan Progressive Conservative Party, the Sask Party, and the New Democratic Party (NDP). We have our first response from the leader of the NDP, Ryan Meili. Read his answers below or click the pdf letter here.
Dear Ms. Cape:
Thank you for taking the time to reach out on these key issues impacting SEIU-West members and their communities. I also want to thank you and your membership for their hard work in these unprecedented times amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
I appreciate the opportunity to share our vision for a better Saskatchewan in response to your questions:
1. Home care service allows people to access health care services without being in hospital or a long-term care home, but since 2014, home care services have been cut by 8% - what will your government do to ensure Saskatchewan’s aging population has access to public home care services?
Saskatchewan’s New Democrats have concerns about the reduction in home care services for seniors under Scott Moe and the Sask. Party. We are committed to building the best home care program in Canada. That includes an additional $50 million for hiring more staff to provide more services so seniors can stay in their homes longer and age in dignity. This commitment includes funding for healthcare staff, as well as other staff like cooks, groundskeepers, and cleaners to ensure seniors have the non-medical supports they need to stay in their homes for as long as they can.
2. The spotlight has shone on health care during the COVID-19 pandemic, but understaffing remains in crisis – what will your government do to ensure residents, patients, and clients have effective staffing levels in order to provide quality health care? This question applies to both long- term care and acute care.
We know short-staffing is the norm on the frontlines of long-term and acute care. Saskatchewan’s New Democrats have committed to investing an additional $100 million to end short staffing in long-term care and acute care to make sure patients in our hospitals and medical facilities can get the healthcare they need when they need it.
Saskatchewan New Democrats are also committed to legislating mandatory minimum care standards in long-term care.
3. Community based organizations (CBOs) provide programs and services to children, those struggling with addictions, people facing mental health challenges, people living with intellectual or physical disabilities, and much more. However, CBOs do not receive stable funding – this results in lower quality care, job insecurity, and low wages. What will your government do to ensure CBOs have stable multi-year funding?
Saskatchewan’s New Democrats value the important work employees in community-based organizations do for their communities and believe it is past time for a fair deal that compensates these workers fairly. Unlike the Sask. Party’s promise of four years of cuts and austerity, we will strive to establish stable and predictable funding for the CBO sector.
4. COVID-19 has left many families and education workers concerned about the education plan – even before the pandemic, many were concerned about overcrowding in classrooms. What will you do to ensure reasonable class sizes and a safety plan for schools across the province?
We know our class sizes were too big before the pandemic, and this situation has only gotten worse in these uncertain times. That is why Saskatchewan’s New Democrats are committed to increasing funding to school divisions by $125 million to allow divisions to hire more teachers, more educational assistants, and more cleaning staff to reduce class size, address complexity in the classroom, and keep our kids safe.
5. Does your party have anything else it wishes to add that will benefit SEIU-West members and their communities?
Saskatchewan’s New Democrats are committed to a $15/hour minimum wage for all Saskatchewan workers. We will also negotiate a fair contract with SEIU-West healthcare workers who have shamefully been left without a contract for more than 1,000 days by Scott Moe and the Sask. Party.
I want to thank you for the invitation to your Facebook Live event. Please also accept my best wishes for your health and safety during the challenging times our province is facing with COVID-19.
Sincerely,
Ryan Meili
Leader of Saskatchewan’s New Democrats
Scroll down to see useful responses to candidate talking points!
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Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Elections Saskatchewan has introduced the option of voting by mail for the 2020 Saskatchewan provincial election.
It's one of the several options you have available to ensure that you can cast your vote for the person who will represent you in the Saskatchewan Legislature for the next four years.
Here's an infographic that lays out what you need to do in order to get your mail-in ballot.
If you have any further questions about voting, please visit elections.sk.ca/voters.