Ontario spending on private nursing agencies has more than quadrupled since pandemic began
The use of private nursing agencies to fill staffing gaps in Ontario hospitals has more than quadrupled since the pandemic began.
The figures are laid out in an arbitration decision for hospital nurses represented by the Ontario Nurses' Association released last week.
Chair William Kaplan says that in 2020-21, hospitals reported spending $38,350,956 on agency nurses. By 2022-23 that cost had exploded to $173,669,808.
"The vast expansion of overtime and agency nurse usage – demonstrated by a truly astonishing growth in both – establishes a true recruitment and retention problem," Kaplan writes of the extra hours in his July 20 decision.
He explains that hospitals are paying agency nurses double or triple rates for contract nurses because it's the only way for hospitals to meet their staffing needs with compensation "a, if, not the, key driver in attracting employees."
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
A spokesperson for Health Minister Sylvia Jones insists the hours worked by agency nurses are dropping and represent less than two percent of all hours work in Ontario hospitals.
Jones described nursing agencies as a tool to help hospitals when plans change.
It just speaks to the fact that when we have hospitals partners who are able to react and respond to increase community needs, they have the ability to do that," Jones told reporters in Kitchener Monday.
Kaplan's arbitration decision awarded ONA members an 11 percent wage increase spread over two years.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Lawsuit against Meta asks if Facebook users have right to control their feeds using external tools
Do social media users have the right to control what they see — or don't see — on their feeds?
BREAKING 15-year-old boy stabbed in Ottawa on Thursday dies
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Dash cam catches moment suspected drunk driver hits parked car, sends it careening into North Shore flower shop
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Nylander defends Leafs' core after playoff exit, Toronto again picks up the pieces
The Maple Leafs battled back from a 3-1 series deficit against the Boston Bruins with consecutive 2-1 victories - including one that required extra time - in their first-round playoff series to push the club's Original Six rival to the limit before suffering a devastating Game 7 overtime loss.
Amid climate change warnings, Canadians lukewarm on electric vehicles
Amid scientists' warnings that nations need to transition away from fossil fuels to limit climate change, Canadians are still lukewarm on electric vehicles, according to a study conducted by Nanos Research for CTV News.
Three dead, two hospitalized, following collision in Fredericton: police
Three people have died and two have been hospitalized after a speeding car struck a tree and landed on another vehicle in Fredericton Sunday morning.
Montreal man on the hook for thousands of dollars after a feature on his Tesla caused an accident
A Montreal man is warning Tesla drivers about using the Smart Summon feature after his vehicle hit another in a parking lot.
Madonna's biggest-ever concert transforms Rio's Copacabana beach into a massive dance floor
Madonna put on a free concert on Copacabana beach Saturday night, turning Rio de Janeiro's vast stretch of sand into an enormous dance floor teeming with a multitude of her fans.