Letter From The Presidentadmin2025-03-04T04:15:06+00:00
In 2024, it was the honour of a lifetime to be named SEIU Healthcare president. Starting as an organizer 20 years ago, I have dedicated my career to building worker power, and over the past year, we’ve made important strides to move that work forward.
We collectively flexed our power by defeating Bill 124, which opened the door for us to win historic gains across all sectors at the bargaining table. We still have a fight ahead of us to ensure all healthcare jobs are good jobs, but our wins over the last year have raised the floor and showed employers that we will fight for every dollar to ensure you get what you deserve.
To guide you to build and activate your own power, we increased our education opportunities, training more than 2000 members in our revamped Stewards Training, Return to Work, and Health and Safety Champion courses. We’ve also empowered several of our members to transition into careers with our union through our Steward Mentorship and Rep in Training programs.
Worker power isn’t just about strength at the bargaining table, Queen’s Park and Parliament Hill. In 2024, we doubled down on our commitment to be an inclusive, anti-racist union that stands against all forms of discrimination. Part of that work included launching our Social Justice Toolkit, a powerful resource to help you identify and fight back against the alarming rise in racism and discrimination many of you are experiencing in your units.
We know times are tougher than ever, and that’s why this year we expanded our Member Assistance Program. In addition to mental health and addiction services, the MAP now offers resources to assist those dealing with domestic violence, food and housing insecurity and financial wellness issues.
One of the things we’ve heard from you is that you wanted more in-unit activity, and in 2024, we delivered by introducing per-unit funding for both our rebate program and Purple Day. This led to a record number of in-unit events. As we come together more, our power grows.
And as THE union who refuses to accept the status quo, we’ve spent the last year laying the groundwork to transform our healthcare system through the new SEIU Healthcare Training Centre. Whether it’s tackling health human resource challenges, fighting back against the multi-billion-dollar healthcare staffing agency problem, or eliminating barriers for you to get the training needed to advance your career, we’re finding solutions to ensure all healthcare jobs can be sustainable careers.
In 2025, we must continue to activate our power as we take on mounting social, economic and political threats. As we continue to expand our programs and services to address your changing needs, it will take all our collective power to achieve the wins you deserve. I look forward to visiting your workplaces and meeting many of you in 2025.
Let’s get to work!
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