Nurses condemn closure of psych unit at West Coast General Hospital ... Nurses speak out for InSite clinic ... Employment: More People Moving from Good Jobs to Bad Jobs ... Government UnderFunding is Forcing Program Cuts Says VCC Board Chair ... All Job Growth in Lowest-Paid Industry ... BC Federation of Labour to hold conference for young workers ... B.C. has worst child poverty ... As the paper piles up, Liberals try 'one-stop centres' for first nations ... Canada's unemployment rate rises to 6.1 per cent in April ... Needle exchange enters untested waters ... No end in sight for B.C. forestry woes ...

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Spotlite Magazine

March - April 2008 Issue of Spotlite Magazine available online NOW.

Current Issue

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Mental Health Week 2008

The Canadian Mental Health Association's 57th Mental Health Week takes place May 5th through 11th. This year's theme is "Mental Health: Make it Your Business" and focuses on the role that employers and businesses can play in making their workplace a mentally healthy and productive environment. The national awareness week provides Canadians with many opportunities to find out more about the importance of mental health, and how to achieve it in our daily lives.

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Canadians need unions now more than ever

Every day we are told that everything is well. That the economy produces more jobs. More jobs than any other industrial country. That companies have records profits. That provincial and federal governments have surpluses!

But do you feel that you are better off than you were 25 or five years ago?

But do you feel that your children are better off than they were 25 or five years ago?

Do you feel the opportunities there for your children and your grand children to achieve a society with a standard of living that is as good as or better than the one you have enjoyed?

If you answered no . . . you're right up there with 80% of the population in this country.

On Thursday, Statistics Canada released the 2006 Census report "Earnings and Incomes of Canadians over the Past Quarter Century," Its numbers are especially shocking because they are from the Census, not independent analyses from smaller samples. The numbers say that:

• between 1980 and 2005 the 20% top income earners increased their gains by 16.4% while the wages of the bottom 20% lost 20.6% of their purchasing power;
• between 1980 and 2005 the median earning of a Canadian worker only moved by a miserly $53.00;
• in 2005 the average woman worker under 29 years old earned 85% of what her male counterparts were getting. Women over 45 years old were only getting 72% of what men were earning.

Earnings of new immigrants in Canada (fewer than six years) that amounted to 77% born-Canadian earners have crashed to 48% of what Canadian earners received by 2005.

These numbers do not paint the picture of the country we want.

These numbers explain why over the last two decades Canadians have lost faith. In government and in business.

As prices for gas, food and other essentials are rising, these numbers remind us that more than ever Canadians need the leadership that strong unions provide.

This is where unions make a difference in people's lives – every since unions existed in the middle of the 19th century. We – in the unions – are good at promoting equality where it counts.

In bargaining collective agreements, one workplace at a time.

CLC-CTC

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New Health Legislation threatens Medicare as we know it, unless we act now and send a message to Health Minister George Abbot telling him to Kill Bill 21!

British Columbians have spoken: they know universal public health care is the most efficient, fair and affordable way to provide health care to all regardless of income. They want proven, public solutions to make Medicare stronger.

But government is ignoring the interests of British Columbians and pushing Bill 21, through the legislature right now!

Click HERE to send a message!

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Elements of a Best Practice Violence Prevention Program for BC Healthcare

Healthcare staff are an essential and integral part of British Columbia’s (BC) healthcare system. Numerous studies have shown that exposure to aggressive and violent behaviour is known to negatively impact healthcare workers’ mental and physical health, sometimes with devastating effects. Although the healthcare sub-sector is only 10% of the provincial workforce, 40% of all province-wide WCB Claims due to "violence" arise out of the healthcare sub-sector. It is important to note that this statistic does not reflect the actual number of violent incidents occurring in healthcare, as many incidents either go unreported or do not result in a WCB claim. The actual percentage of violence occurring in healthcare is much higher in reality. Developing, implementing, and evaluating violence prevention programs (VPP) has and continues to involve a challenging process, and such programs are not standardized across BC healthcare worksites.

To address this serious issue, the Provincial Violence Prevention Steering Committee (PVPSC) was created with the support of BC’s Healthcare stakeholders:

• Ministry of Health
• Nursing Policy Management Committee
• Health Employers Association of BC
• Healthcare Unions
• BC Health Authorities
• Affiliate Healthcare Employers

The PVPSC is coordinated by the Occupational Health and Safety Agency for Healthcare in BC (OHSAH). The PVPSC’s purpose is to develop and oversee the implementation of a comprehensive, cohesive, and effective provincial violence prevention strategy for healthcare worksites in BC. The PVPSC will work cooperatively with the Regional Violence Prevention Committees (RVPCs) and will identify and promote examples of best practice in violence prevention.

To this end, the PVPSC has developed a framework outlining the Elements of a “Best Practice” Violence Prevention Program, to support BC’s healthcare stakeholders and, specifically, joint RVPCs and local Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committees (JOHSCs). The framework provides a list of the elements that make up a comprehensive “best practice” VPP that addresses the challenges of healthcare workplaces.

Full report

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If you are aware of a UPN member who has recently passed away please notify the UPN office either by phone @ 604-931-2471 or by email: upn@telus.net.

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Union of Psychiatric Nurses of B.C.

UPN Office

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Staff Members

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