Members mobilize for the federal election
On the heels of a whirlwind provincial election, members were ready to take action with the Nurses Vote campaign at the federal level.
Just like the recent provincial election, member secondees engaged their fellow members and made supporting our health-care system a key issue. Secondees from every region joined the election team, ready to make health care a priority.
“I was frustrated with the state of our province and wanted to try to change that for the better for future nurses and health-care workers,” said Meghan Antolin, a registered nurse (RN) in the hospital sector, when asked why she became a member secondee. “I needed to use my voice with the strength of ONA behind me to encourage health-care workers to vote, and vote for a party that will help the health-care system I love working in.”
Raven McLean, an RN in the hospital sector, had similar reasons for getting involved. “I recognized that this election was a bellwether election on issues of social and personal social priorities. More than health care, more than the economy, I knew at the start of the year that social conservatism and caring about one another was on the ballot.”
Health care was a key election issue for many Canadians. Secondees were ready to get to work helping to elect a progressive government that would protect and improve our health-care system, including keeping it public. To achieve that goal they needed to mobilize as many members as possible to get out and vote and to emphasize the role that the federal government plays in our health care.
Secondees worked for weeks to engage their fellow members. The small but mighty team recruited volunteers, ran phone banks, hosted debate watch parties, and got out into their communities by leafletting and canvassing.
“I talked to so many members during phone banks and heard their concerns about the health-care system, which taught me that, like me, so many nurses are very passionate about protecting our public system and our patients,” says Antolin. “The majority of them were so appreciative of us talking to them about the importance of the election.”
Secondees spoke with politicians face-to-face, getting a first-hand glimpse into the political world and just how hard we all have to fight to hold them accountable. After attending secondee training in Toronto they attended Provincial Leadership Meeting, where they were rally marshals for the Victorian Order of Nurses action at Queen’s Park. They also contributed to the work of the union by gathering signatures for staffing ratio and anti-privatization petitions and distributing packets to Local Coordinators and Bargaining Unit Presidents to gather signatures in their own bargaining units and communities.
I talked to so many members during phone banks and heard their concerns about the health-care system.
“There were so many lessons on our government system, I felt empowered to help other members when they had questions about the election. It taught me more confidence on the phone, something that I was fearful of before starting the campaign. I also learnt how to speak effectively to our government officials to make an impact with our issues,” said Antolin, on what she learned by being part of the Nurses Vote campaign.
McLean had a similar experience. “I learned a lot about communicating with people. Having the opportunity to touch on politics, and social priorities was a valuable asset in communicating about our shared priorities as union members and was also a way to allow people to feel heard. The members I spoke with were thankful for the opportunity and happy to be contacted.”
“I learned a lot more about ONA and ONA governance, and I learned more about how strategic ridings are identified,” echoed Pamela Wilton, an RN in public health.
Secondees and volunteers made over 35,000 calls and sent over 44,000 texts to ONA members in 42 ridings across the province, including Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and Liberal Leader Mark Carney's ridings. They also got out into their communities, knocking on over 400 doors, distributing over 1,800 leaflets and hosting six election events including debate watch parties and a press conference.
When asked what, if anything, she plans to do to continue her activism, Antolin readily shared, “I plan to join my local bargaining unit executive and continue to grow my knowledge of unionism. I want to continue to advocate for our health-care system and hold our elected officials accountable for the promises made during their campaigns. I plan to get further involved in the political side that ONA has to offer with our provincial and regional political committees.”
And to her fellow ONA members, she had this advice, “If you have ever had a passionate discussion about politics, join this program! There is so much support from the government relations and mobilizing staff to help you learn more. It was very rewarding, educational and different from anything I've ever done before!”
McLean agreed, saying, “I would absolutely encourage anyone interested to jump at the opportunity to work with the Nurses Vote campaign.”
I would absolutely encourage anyone interested to jump at the opportunity to work with the Nurses Vote campaign.
No matter which party is in power, we must continue to fight for better public health care. The Liberals may have promised to “increase productivity in the health-care sector,” but they haven’t committed to increasing the Canada Health Transfer or expanding pharmacare. It’s important to keep fighting to protect our past victories and advocate fiercely for improvements.
We know that cuts and privatization of public services will only make life harder for people. We cannot allow this to happen, to continue doing more with less. The federal government must invest in health care and the workers who provide it because we know that a healthy country is a strong country. As health-care professionals, we will be there to protect our patients as well as ourselves.
Prime Minister Carney and his cabinet were sworn in on Tuesday, May 13. Marjorie Michel is Minister of Health and Patty Hajdu is Minister of Jobs and Families. Prime Minister Carney also announced a secretary of state position for labour, with John Zerucelli in that role. Parliament will resume on May 26.
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