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Unifor health care and social services workers from across Ontario gathered at Queen’s Park this week for a legislative lobby from May 25-28, demanding urgent action to strengthen public health care, address staffing shortages and stop the expansion of privatized care.
“Health care workers are holding this system together under impossible conditions,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne.
“Our members came to Queen’s Park to demand a strong, fully public health care system that puts patients and workers before privatization and profit. Governments must stop forcing workers and communities to carry the burden of underfunding and political inaction.”
Frontline workers met directly with elected officials to raise concerns about burnout, underfunding, unsafe workloads, recruitment and retention challenges, and the growing pressure facing Ontario’s health care system.
“Frontline workers know exactly what is happening inside Ontario’s health care system because they live it every day,” said Ontario Regional Director Samia Hashi.
“Workers are exhausted, patients are waiting longer for care and communities are feeling the impacts of chronic underfunding and privatization. Our members came to Queen’s Park to demand action and to make sure workers’ voices are heard directly inside the halls of power.”
Workers participating in the lobby represented a wide range of sectors, including hospitals, long-term care, retirement homes, home care, emergency medical services, and community-based social services.
Throughout the week, members called on the provincial government to increase stable core funding for hospitals and public services, improve staffing and retention strategies, phase out reliance on private staffing agencies, and stop the expansion of private, for-profit clinics and services.
The lobby also highlighted growing concerns around workloads, worker burnout, and the pressures created by staffing shortages across the province.
The lobby week is part of Unifor’s broader Care Can't Wait campaign to defend and strengthen public health care and social services in Ontario.
Unifor has also recently raised concerns about layoffs and restructuring in hospitals, the growing use of private staffing agencies, and changes related to Ontario’s PSW registry and the Health and Supportive Care Providers Oversight Authority (HSCPOA).
The union says worker-led advocacy and direct engagement with elected officials remain critical as pressures on Ontario’s health care system continue to intensify.
The lobby week culminated in a major rally alongside the Ontario Health Coalition and allies from across the province on May 28.
See photos of the lobby on Unifor's Facebook page.
