COVID-19 vaccination mandate deadline approaching for N.S.'s public sector workers
All provincial employees and those who fall under Nova Scotia’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate are required to have at least one dose of vaccine by Tuesday, Nov. 30.
Those who are partially vaccinated may be subject to other health and safety measures, including testing, while those who do not have a first dose by the deadline will face employment consequences, including unpaid leave.
At this point, it’s unclear how many employees could be placed on unpaid leave when the mandate comes into effect.
"There seems to be some concerns that we don't know for certain whether or not this is going to impact staffing, but I think that actually points to a bigger problem. Which is that we shouldn't have a system that runs so bare to the bone that minor staffing disruptions can cause this much of a threat,” said Chris Parsons with the Nova Scotia Health Coalition.
Meena MacIsaac, the CEO of Grand View Manor in Berwick, N.S., said like others in the long-term care sector, they were already under significant pressure before the pandemic and looming vaccine mandate.
"In the last three weeks, we've had 19 resignations. Some of them would of course be as a result of the vaccine mandate,” MacIsaac said.
According to MacIsaac, the gaps in staffing means employees are getting burnt out. She said the root cause of staffing shortages in long-term care needs to be addressed to turn the situation around, starting with compensation.
"Our CCA's are the core of our staffing within the province in long-term care and their salaries start at $17.50 an hour, and that's for uncertified CCA's and in Nova Scotia. A CCA that's certified tops out at three years' experience at $18.96,” said MacIsaac. “They can go and get a job in retail or in food services and make just as much."
MacIsaac said she is thankful to staff and designated caregivers for all of their support during this time.
As of Nov. 23, 95 per cent of long-term care employees were fully vaccinated and three per cent were partially vaccinated, with 95 per cent reporting.
Ninety-nine per cent of employees at the IWK Health Centre were double-dosed as of last week and one per cent were partially vaccinated, with 99 per cent reporting.
Meantime, 97 per cent of those in education were fully vaccinated and another two per cent had one shot, with 90 per cent reporting.
Paul Wozney, the president of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union, said it’s unclear if there will be an impact on operations if some employees are placed on unpaid leave.
"It's impossible to know how many of that one per cent of people aren't vaccinated for legitimate medical reasons and how many might be put on unpaid medical leave. It's less than 91 people in total that are not vaccinated and we know there are definitely people who aren't vaccinated because there are legitimate medical reasons,” said Wozney.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.