Ontario nurses getting up to $5,000 incentive pay to stay on the job
The Ontario government is giving eligible nurses a $5,000 payment to help incentivize them to stay on the job.
According to the government, the $763-million investment will help to retain nurses across the health sector and stabilize the current nursing workforce in Ontario.
Eligible full-time nurses will receive a lump sum $5,000 payment, while eligible part-time and casual nurses will receive $5,000 in two installments.
The money will be given to eligible nurses through their employer, the government said.
"Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic nurses have stayed on the front lines with remarkable dedication and selflessness as they care for our sick and most vulnerable Ontarians,” Health Minister Christine Elliott said in a statement Monday. "This investment will support the nurses we currently have so that Ontarians continue to have access to the care they need during the COVID-19 pandemic and into the future."
WHO IS ELIGIBLE?
According to the government, nurses eligible to receive the payment include nurses in hospitals, long-term care and retirement homes, home and community care, primary care, mental health and addictions, emergency services, and corrections, as well as range of other community based and developmental services including youth justice.
Nurses in a management or supervisory role who were redeployed to a direct patient care role during the pandemic will also qualify.
For part-time and casual nurses, to receive the first payment, they must be employed as of March 31, and to receive the second payment nurses must be employed on Sept. 1.
The announcement was immediately slammed by a collection of unions representing 85,000 nurses who labelled it as a "band air pay-as-you-vote gimmick."
"Nurses across the province are angry at once again being thrown crumbs by this government, instead of meaningful solutions to the health staffing crisis," Sharleen Stewart, president of SEIU Healthcare, said.
Nurse and health-care workers have been calling on the government to repeal Bill 124 – the Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector for Future Generations Act -- which has capped public sector salaries since 2019.
Nursing unions say the $5,000 won't retain and recruit nurses who are looking for "long-term predictability and support."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s has linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
$500K-worth of elvers seized at Toronto airport
Fishery and border service officers seized more than 100 kilograms of unauthorized elvers at the Toronto Pearson International Airport on Wednesday.
Toronto eliminated from PWHL playoffs
Toronto has been eliminated from the PWHL playoffs.
Information commissioner faces $700K funding shortfall, says system is 'overwhelmed'
Canada's information commissioner says her office is facing a $700,000 funding shortfall that could impact its ability to investigate complaints about government transparency and accountability.
B.C. man 'attacked suddenly' by adult grizzly near Alberta boundary: RCMP
A B.C. man is recovering from multiple injuries after he was "attacked suddenly" by an adult grizzly bear near Elkford Thursday afternoon.
Backlash over NFL player Harrison Butker's commencement speech has reached a new level
The NFL is distancing itself from controversial comments by Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker during a recent commencement address.
Dabney Coleman, actor who specialized in curmudgeons, dies at 92
Dabney Coleman, the mustachioed character actor who specialized in smarmy villains like the chauvinist boss in '9 to 5' and the nasty TV director in 'Tootsie,' has died. He was 92.
Craig Berube named as next head coach of Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have named Craig Berube as their new head coach.