Long-term care union and N.S. back to bargaining table Wednesday

The union representing long term care workers is heading back to the bargaining table with the provincial government later Wednesday afternoon.

Seven weeks into the strike, representatives from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and the government will meet with the help of the Chief Conciliation Officer, according to a news release from the union.

“We agreed to go back to the table in the hopes that, this time, the government will come with an offer that brings all long term care workers closer to a living wage instead of the same tired deal they’ve been presenting over and over, both at the table and in the media,” wrote Christa Sweeney, long term and community care committee chair, in the release.

This comes the same day as another long-term care home, Glen Haven Manor, in New Glasgow, has joined the strike, bringing the total amount of workers off the job to about 3,600.

Kim Cail, the CUPE coordinator for long-term care workers, says the government had a list of stipulations for them returning to the bargaining table, but CUPE maintains their stance that they will not send an offer to union members if they are not fully confident in it.

“The only vote we will have is a ratification vote after reaching a tentative agreement. That is the standard process and what was agreed to in our Lead Table Protocol, as the government is well aware, and that’s what we will do,” wrote Cail in the release.