By Canadian Press

Work conditions in long-term care must go beyond new standards: labour congress

Feb 1, 2023 | 12:44 PM

OTTAWA — The head of the Canadian Labour Congress says new standards to improve the quality of long-term care are not enough to address the serious staffing issues that led to dismal and deadly conditions for seniors during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Experts with the non-profit Health Standards Organization this week released updated guidelines for delivering high quality long-term care, stressing the need to attract and keep enough workers in homes to properly look after the residents.

They recommend a pay raise and opportunities for full-time employment.

Canadian Labour Congress president Bea Bruske says the new standards are a step in the right direction, but it will be both complicated and expensive to actually improve working conditions in long-term care homes and encourage more people to take those jobs.

University of Alberta Prof. Carole Estabrooks, who helped develop the standards, says they are only a starting point and won’t immediately address the dire and urgent need for more workers.

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Miranda Ferrier with the Canadian Support Workers Association says homes have been operating without enough staff to give all residents the care they need for a long time, but the problem became much more serious when the pandemic began.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 1, 2023.

The Canadian Press