Hospital Employees Union members that work doing housekeeping and food services at all Victoria, Nanaimo and Duncan hospitals are taking a strike vote today, along with their provincial colleagues.
HEU's Bob Wilson has been at the bargaining table and says the union has been negotiating for close to a year, and all the employer is offering is a 10 cent increase over 3 years. He says most workers make about $15.75 an hour, meantime before privatization almost 15 years ago they made $18 an hour and had a pension plan.
Wilson says the workload is through the roof, and even though members are the lowest paid in the hospitals they pay the highest rates for parking. The rep says despite the valuable work members do it does not seem to be valued. Besides wages, job security is an issue because if the health authority cancels a contract employees wilol be laid off.
HEU members in the Victoria area are voting today, Nanaimo and Duncan tomorrow. Results could be released as early as Friday.
The workers are employed by Compass Group, Marquise Hospitality and Acciona.