I’m writing in response to the letters submitted by J. Miller and Leonard Chenery about hospital staff paying for parking. Yes, I’m one of those “highly paid professionals.”

The amount that I’m being asked to pay is minimal in relation to my cheque but not in relation to the take home pay of the majority of staff working at MSA Hospital.

Remember that we have staff working for HEU who took a 15 per cent wage reduction, and also Sodhexo and Intercon Security who receive much less pay than any of us. Parking fees will be difficult for many of these individuals.

The Medical staff put in many unpaid hours of their time to service patients.

J. Miller speaks of having to pay for parking in places he has worked in the past such as Edmonton and that the amount was high at that time. According to him we should be grateful that the amount is nominal. How could we possibly complain? You are right the working public do have to pay for the privilege of parking elsewhere. However Abbotsford is not Vancouver, and just because someone else does it, doesn’t make it right.

Mr. Chenery is right that most people are stressed to the max when at the hospital and should not have to worry about having enough loonies to cover parking.

When paid parking was instituted several years ago the staff mounted a campaign to block this both for the public and for staff. The HEU were successful for the staff, at that time, through arbitration. Now FHA wants to renege on that agreement.

We approached Abbotsford City Council and they did not step up to the plate and follow Mission’s lead in passing a bylaw preventing the FHA from charging the public for parking.

The FHA states they will be adding security, leasing space from the Medical Tower and maintaining the existing lot. The cost will be approximately $40,000 per year. The FHA will be collecting approximately $130,000 per year. Where will the rest of the money be going?

We, the staff would like to see no paid parking at the Hospital for anyone.

D. Southwick, RN
Abbotsford