During the week of June 13 to 19, join OPSEU/SEFPO as we celebrate Health Professionals’ Week in honour of the front-line heroes who have kept our communities, and our province, safe and healthy during the COVID-19 crisis.
While the enormous efforts of health professionals can hardly be summed up in four words, this year’s theme of “unstoppable against all odds,” sure comes close.
As Ontario’s union of choice for allied health professionals, OPSEU/SEFPO established Health Professionals’ Week as a way to pay tribute to the 25,000+ members who make up the Hospital Professionals’ Division (HPD). These dedicated professionals work in an array of classifications in hospitals all across Ontario, and provide the highest quality of patient care possible.
During Health Professionals’ Week, OPSEU/SEFPO Locals will be hosting workplace and community appreciation events to show support for our front-line heroes, who have certainly been unstoppable against all odds during the COVID-19 crisis, and long before it too.
It’s also an important time to raise awareness about the ongoing issues plaguing the health care sector, including chronic underfunding, short-staffing, and with bargaining on the horizon, Bill 124 and its unconstitutional wage caps for health professionals, and all public sector employees alike.
Health professionals have faced enormous challenges during the COVID-19 crisis, and the many decades of deep budget cuts and privatization that preceded it. All of this has taken its toll. Now, after more than a year on the front lines of the crisis, and directly in the line of fire – risking their own health, and even their lives – health professionals have been pushed to the limit.
But these consummate professionals have managed to go above and beyond the call of duty to keep Ontarians safe. They have persevered, and now, they deserve better – better protection, like PPE, and fairer compensation and benefits, like improved paid sick leave and isolation pay.
And Ontarians agree. Many have witnessed through personal experience, and the media, the crucial role that health professionals have played during the pandemic. It’s no wonder that most Ontarians want the government to increase hospital funding and staffing, and believe that a properly funded public health care system is our best option in preparing for future health threats, like the pandemic.
So, as we continue our work to build a better Ontario, let’s take a moment to show our support and solidarity for our unstoppable health professionals whose contributions are endless and undeniable. To each of you, thank you for your unwavering dedication to your patients, our union and our province.
In Solidarity,
Warren (Smokey) Thomas
OPSEU/SEFPO President
Eduardo (Eddy) Almeida
OPSEU/SEFPO First Vice-President/Treasurer