Brandon health workers lose case over COVID-19 back pay

More than two dozen health-care support workers in western Manitoba got news last week they will not receive back pay for extra work as COVID spread through health-care facilities across the province.

An arbitrator found they did not fit the criteria needed to receive the payout.

In an email last Thursday by the Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union (MGEU), the union explained that in February of 2022 they filed a group grievance regarding COVID allowances on behalf of approximately 25 members who worked in Facility Support units and Community Support units in the Brandon Regional Health Centre (BRHC).

Workers in those positions often work in emergency rooms, among other units, and the grievance was filed after the provincial government provided COVID premium pay for health-care support workers who worked in hospital emergency departments and personal care homes during COVID outbreak situations, as part of a signed memorandum of agreement (MOA).

The workers named in the grievance say they were expecting to be included in the group that would receive the premium, but when the money was paid out they were not, leading to legal action being taken. 

After the employer denied grievances, MGEU took them to arbitration on May 3, and last week an arbitrator decided they did not have standing to receive the payout.  

In an email to the affected employees, obtained by the Winnipeg Sun, MGEU claimed the ruling was based on technicalities as COVID spread through hospitals in Manitoba during the worst of the pandemic.  

“The issue in the arbitration was a matter of contract interpretation, and not whether members deserved additional compensation for their work during the pandemic,” MGEU said in their email.  

“While this is not the result we were hoping for, and will no doubt be disappointing to members, please know that your contributions to health care in Prairie Mountain are invaluable.”  

In a statement, MGEU President Kyle Ross thanked the employees for their work and efforts and expressed disappointment at the arbitrator’s final decision. 

“There was no dispute that working in the BRHC’s emergency department during the pandemic was extremely difficult for members. There was also no dispute about the important work that employees in the emergency department performed during the pandemic,” Ross said.

“However, despite acknowledging your important work and the unique challenges you faced, the panel decided that under the specific language of the MOA, there was no contractual entitlement to COVID Allowance payments.” 

Health-care support workers at the BRHC are employed by Prairie Mountain Health (PMH).

“We recognize and acknowledge that not all may agree with the outcome of the arbitration proceedings. The outcome is in no way a reflection on the value of service provided by those employees to the clients seeking care in PMH,” PMH CEO Treena Slat said in an email.  

“We will continue to work collaboratively with the unions and employees in PMH, and are hopeful that we can move forward now that this matter has concluded.”  

This story was originally published in The Winnipeg Sun. It is republished under a Creative Commons license as part of the Local Journalism Initiative.