CHAT News file photo

By Charles Lefebvre

Union representing nurses concerned about potential overtime changes

Jan 2, 2020 | 4:35 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB — The union representing nurses in Alberta says a recent memo for nurses in northern Alberta sends a troubling sign to the rest of the province.

The Edmonton Journal first reported in December that nurses in the North Zone of Alberta received a memo from Alberta Health Services, saying overtime hours must now be pre-approved by management, with the exception of emergencies.

“It’s an attempt to chill the use of overtime,” said Heather Smith, president of the United Nurses of Alberta, over the phone from Edmonton. “It suggests that there is either inappropriate or unnecessary utilization of overtime, which is kind of insulting to staff.”

Heather Smith, president of the United Nurses of Alberta, says they have not yet heard of any other memos for nursing staff in the South Zone, which includes Medicine Hat and Lethbridge.

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“To our knowledge, this was only limited to the North Zone,” she said.

However, she says she is concerned it could be coming to other areas of the province, and says it could have an impact on nurse safety and the quality of patient care.

“That was the concern raised to us by members in the north that they were asked to substitute with lesser skill, work short staffed and create unsafe staffing scenarios,” Smith said. “This has been an issue for us for a long time, the safe staffing levels.”

CHAT News has reached out to Alberta Health Services for an interview, and were provided a statement in response that didn’t directly answer if there was any similar directive regarding overtime in the South Zone.

“All Alberta Health Services (AHS) portfolios are working to be as efficient as possible and to manage their budgets,” the statement reads. “Managing overtime is part of the ongoing work to ensure we are being fiscally responsible.

The statement adds, “AHS clinical staff continue to be paid overtime in accordance with our collective agreements. If a clinical staff member calls in sick, their shift will be covered where appropriate based on clinical need. We do all we can to operate as efficiently as possible, while ensuring quality, timely patient care. AHS is always working to ensure we are taking our responsibilities as stewards of tax payer dollars seriously and to be sure that we also make the organization as efficient as possible. There are efficiencies to be found, such as ensuring that overtime coverage is appropriate, that do not negatively affect patient care.”