Last year, SEIU created a survey for members about climate change and the impact on your lives.
Pinned
June is National Indigenous Peoples Month. This is a time to honour the rich history, resilience, and diversity of First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples. It is an opportunity to reflect on historical and current injustices and commit to true reconciliation in Canada.
The First Nations, Métis and Inuit Committee would like to share some events and resources with you and encourage you to participate in events in your area.
SEIU-West is hosting our first Asian Pacific Islander Summit in Saskatoon on September 24-26, 2026 — an event to bring together workers from across Canada and the U.S.
Being an API member in Canada or the U.S can sometimes feel isolating. You might not have seen yourself in leadership. You may not have always felt seen or understood. But you can find a home with us. We believe in you. We see you. And most importantly, you belong.
Welcome home.
There is currently a vacancy on the SEIU-West Executive Board for members that work for the Community Based Organizations Sector.
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.
On July 29 and 30, SEIU-West members gathered for a virtual townhall to get an update from President Barb Cape and Charlene Sarafin (July 29) and Janice Platzke (July 30). This was an update on the current state of bargaining with the Saskatchewan Association of Health Organizations (SAHO) and the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) a chance for members to ask questions and sharing the plan for a Day of Action/Protest on August 12.
At the last virtual townhall on May 28, 2020 (Afternoon session, Evening Session, and Unanswered Questions), we had our chief negotiator, Bob Laurie, talk about the steps under The Saskatchewan Employment Act (SEA) to reach impasse – meaning that there’s no room to move or negotiate – and then having a mediator appointed by the Minister of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety. That mediator has up to 60 days to reach an agreement between the parties. If there is no agreement, the mediator sends a report on the dispute to the Minister. There is a seven day cooling off period, if an essential services agreement is in place. Then we would be able to issue 48 hour notice of job action.
We’ve also talked with our members about the process for negotiating essential services and having an essential service agreement in place prior to taking job action.
Members have been very vocal about their anger at being without a collective agreement for over three years; there’s a lot of frustration towards the SHA and SAHO for not putting forward a fair offer. Some members, but not nearly enough, have written to the Premier, the Ministers of Health and their MLA’s to talk about their frustration with the government not putting additional money towards a collective agreement. And through all of this is the added anxiety, stress and frustration in the midst of the COVID -19 pandemic.
Your SEIU-West bargaining committee absolutely understands why members are feeling devalued by this long unbearable process we call bargaining. We are angry too. We all know that the government mandate is what is getting in the way of us getting a fair collective agreement, yet when we reach out to our MLA, the Minister of Health or the Premier – they say they don’t want to interfere. Our employer, the SHA, has done nothing to assist our cause… as long as they keep getting their raises, they seem content. We absolutely need the support of public and we need everyone in our community to understand that we are ready to take action.
This is election season, so we want the elected politicians to not only read your letters, but to see you (wearing a mask of course) standing up loud and proud to demand a better offer at the bargaining table. Together we need to demand the respect and recognition that we all deserve. To demand to be seen as a valued member of the health care team responsible for bending the curve of the COVID pandemic.
This International Youth Day (August 12), the SEIU-West Young Workers Committee (YWC) has launched a survey in order to determine young worker experiences during COVID-19 in Saskatchewan. 
The survey should only take 10 minutes, and all young worker participants (35 and under) who are members of SEIU-West will be entered to win one of three Samsung Galaxy tablets! You may only fill out the survey once to be entered.
DEADLINE (extended): September 8, 2020
DRAW: September 10, 2020
Complete the survey here.
The responses will be used in a return letter from the YWC to elected officials.
For Immediate Release, August 12, 2020
Saskatoon – Today, SEIU-West members are demonstrating outside health care facilities in Saskatoon to emphasize their frustration with the lack of progress in bargaining due to the Sask Party government’s refusal to negotiate a fair deal.
For Immediate Release - August 11, 2020
Saskatoon – SEIU-West members will be outside of various health care facilities in Saskatoon on Wednesday August 12, 2020 to demonstrate their frustration with the pace of bargaining and the Saskatchewan government’s refusal to negotiate a fair deal.
“Our members were tired, and burned out prior to the pandemic,” says Barbara Cape, President of SEIU-West. “And they’ve held up their end of the deal to provide skilled professional care that bent the infection rate of COVID-19. It’s time for SAHO and the Sask Party government to do the same.”
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Who |
SEIU-West Health Care members and their supporters Media Spokes people: - *Barbara Cape, President of SEIU-West @ St. Paul’s Hospital - **Janice Platzke, Treasurer of SEIU-West @ Sherbrooke Community Centre Photo/Video opportunities: - All locations |
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What |
Demonstration of protest |
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Date |
Wednesday August 12, 2020 |
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Time |
Protests to occur at variable times at each location between 11:00 am and 1:30 pm |
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Location |
VARIOUS – listed on next page or visit seiuwest.ca/events |
SEIU-West represents over 13,000 people across Saskatchewan. They include people who work in health care, education, municipalities, community-based organizations, retirement homes and other sectors. They are joined by one colour – purple – and one union – SEIU-West. Purple works in our communities! Visit PurpleWorks.ca to find out more about SEIU-West members.
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Location |
Address |
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Central Haven Special Care Home |
1020 Avenue I N |
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Home Care - On Idylwyld |
310 Idylwyld Dr N |
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Luther Care |
1212 Osler St Saskatoon SK |
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Oliver Lodge |
1405 Faulkner Cres |
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Parkridge Centre - East Side Walk |
110 Gropper Cres |
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Parkridge Centre - North Side Walk |
110 Gropper Cres |
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Porteous Lodge |
833 Avenue P N |
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Royal University Hospital - North Side Walk 1 |
103 Hospital Dr |
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Royal University Hospital - North Side Walk 2 |
103 Hospital Dr |
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Royal University Hospital - South Side Walk |
103 Hospital Dr |
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Saskatoon City Hospital |
701 Queen St |
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Saskatoon City Hospital - South Side Walk 1 |
701 Queen St |
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Saskatoon City Hospital - South Side Walk 2 |
701 Queen St |
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**Sherbrooke Community Centre - Acadia Drive & 14th St E |
401 Acadia Dr |
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**Sherbrooke Community Centre - Acadia Drive & Dalhousie Crescent |
401 Acadia Dr |
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*St Paul's Hospital - East Side Walk |
1702 20th St W |
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*St Paul's Hospital - South Side Walk |
1702 20th St W |
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*St Paul's Hospital - North Side Walk |
1702 20th St W |
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St. Ann's Home |
2910 Louise St |
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Stensrud Lodge |
2202 McEown Ave |
-30-
For more information contact:
Christine Miller, Communications Coordinator
Phone: 306-477-8733
Click here to download the PDF Media Advisory: #DoneWaiting
Swift Current – This week the Saskatchewan government announced its plan for the return of K-12 students in September. After reviewing the plan and consulting with its members, SEIU-West has identified further gaps and issues that may put at risk the health and safety of workers and families in areas with some of the province’s highest rates of COVID-19.
Saskatoon-- The unions representing health care providers in Saskatchewan are concerned that the latest expansion of the COVID-19 wage top-up for essential workers still falls short.
July 24 is International Self-Care Day! 
Since the pandemic began, it has become more important than ever for each of us to take care of our own physical, mental and emotional health.
For front line workers like our members who are faced with physical, emotional, and physiological stress at work on a regular basis, self-care is something that can be difficult to focus on.
The purpose of self-care is to take an active role in your own well-being.
Here are some ways to practice self-care:
- Eat healthy and mindfully: Allow yourself to indulge in a nourishing meal without any distractions.
- Keep track of your accomplishments: Recognize ways you were productive today, no matter how small.
- Express gratitude: Everyday take note of things that you’re lucky to have.
- Move: Getting active increases feelings of happiness. Find a form of physical activity that works for you. Dancing, hiking, gardening or a bike ride.
- Unplug for a day: Go on a media and technology fast, and turn off any unnecessary electronic devices.
- Mini Meditation: Begin or end your day with a minute of deep breathing, and focused awareness of your body, thoughts, and feelings.
- Sleep: Take a nap, go to bed earlier and give your body some extra rest.
When either the employer or the union decide they are at a point in collective bargaining where a collective agreement cannot be achieved at the bargaining table, either party can send a notice of impasse to the other party and to the Minister of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety.
