N.B. nurses call for strike vote

The New Brunswick Nurses Union is calling a strike vote for next month after contract talks with the provincial government broke off last Friday.

The union held an emergency meeting on Monday where the decision was made to trigger a strike vote between Dec. 8 and 10.

Marilyn Quinn, president of the nurses' union, said the sticking point with the provincial government is compensation for nurses working longer shifts and weekends.

"Too many nurses are working short-handed every shift they work," Quinn said in a statement.

"Overtime and double shifts are a daily occurrence. It's beginning to take a toll on our nurses. How long can nurses go on working a 12-hour shift, go home and sleep four hours, and then return to work for another 12 hours?"

Nurses leaving province: union leader

Quinn told reporters on Tuesday that these long shifts are causing some nurses to quit or leave the province.

The majority of the 5,500 nurses work in New Brunswick's hospitals.

If nurses vote to strike on Dec. 10, the union must give the province seven days of notice before they walk off the job. More than 70 per cent of the union is designated essential and those nurses would not be permitted to strike.

But with many nurses already working overtime, a strike would likely lead to cancelled surgeries and longer wait times.

The two sides went back to the table after nurses rejected a tentative agreement that had been negotiated.

Human Resources Minister Rick Brewer said in a statement that he was disappointed by the nurses' decision and that the provincial negotiators offered to make adjustments to the first wage offer.

"We also offered to extend our 11.5 per cent wage offer over a longer period, and direct funds to premiums the union told us were a priority. Beyond this, we could not meet the union's demands for more money," Brewer's statement said.

"These are difficult economic times across the globe, and New Brunswickers are not immune to these challenges."

The two sides restarted negotiations on Nov. 4. The nurses' union indicated progress was made with the Department of Health on a funded partnership agreement that would address issues of retention and recruitment.