Nurses' Union Rallies Continue as Kelowna Nurses Defend Legal Right to Job Action

The BC Nurses' Union (BCNU) continues to call on health employers to end the intimidation, coercion and interference reported by nurses across British Columbia since engaging in legal job action July 2.

The Kelowna rally follows one held in Prince George last week and is among a series of events being planned in communities throughout the province.

"This is about more than one hospital or one health authority," said BCNU President Adriane Gear. "It's about ensuring every nurse in British Columbia can participate in legal job action without fear of intimidation or retaliation."

BCNU has received over 5,200 reports from nurses across the province sharing how they have been threatened or intimidated by their employers to carry out struck work despite the union’s direction to members to refuse all non-nursing duties beginning July 2. In Interior Health alone, more than 900 nurses have reported similar experiences. 

"You cannot depend on nurses every day to hold the system together while threatening them for advocating for themselves. Those two things cannot exist together," says Gear.

Kelowna General Hospital serves as the Central Okanagan's primary acute care hospital. Like many communities across the Interior, the region has experienced ongoing staffing shortages and repeated service disruptions, including emergency department closures at health-care sites throughout the Okanagan.

Last week, BCNU removed its picket lines as a demonstration of good faith after mediation between the NBA and HEABC began. BCNU remains committed to the mediation process while continuing to speak out about the experiences of nurses on the front lines.

To set up an interview, please contact BCNU Communications at media@bcnu.org