(November 5, 2025) By: Tyler Cheese, CBC News<\/p>\n
Rita Ha, a pharmacist and the worker’s bargaining unit president, says government funds meant for wage increases should be redirected to staff<\/em><\/p>\n A group of striking health-care workers in North York say their employer misused provincial funding that should have gone toward wage increases.<\/p>\n Forty-four nurses and health-care professionals \u2013 including social workers, dietitians, and pharmacists \u2013 from the North York Family Health Team (NYFHT) have been on strike since Oct. 20.<\/p>\n Rita Ha, a pharmacist and the group\u2019s bargaining unit president, told CBC Toronto the workers want to see the government funds redirected to staff along with a fair collective agreement.<\/p>\n \u201cWe’ve been doing negotiations since April 2024,\u201d she said. \u201cEvery single time we come to the table, they’re saying, \u2018There’s no money, there’s no money, there’s no money.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n In June this year, the Ford government announced $235 million in funding to support new and expanded primary care teams. At the time, Health Minister Sylvia Jones said $142 million of the funding would be provided to those teams over three years to recruit and retain health-care workers, including through wage increases.<\/p>\n But the NYFHT\u2019s board of directors used that funding to recover a budget deficit, Ha said.<\/p>\n In a statement to CBC Toronto, NYFHT\u2019s board chair, Dr. Tim Li, and interim CEO and executive director, Nureen Ladha, said they\u2019ve done the best they can with the funds provided.<\/p>\n \u201cWe continue to invest in our team by providing increases where feasible, covering employee benefits premiums and offering a comprehensive pension package within the funding provided to us,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n \u201cWe also continue to advocate for increased funding and flexibility to better support our teams and patients.\u201d<\/p>\n The group of NYFHT employees is represented by the Ontario Nurses Association (ONA). They joined the union in April 2024 and say they’re seeking their first collective agreement with their employer.<\/p>\n Parties should work it out, ministry says<\/strong><\/p>\n The union has called on the province to hold the health team\u2019s board of directors accountable for the redirection of funding, according to an Oct. 20 news release.<\/p>\n In an email to CBC News, director of communications for the health ministry, Jackson Jacobs, wrote the ministry \u201cnot involved in bargaining efforts with the ONA and the NYFHT. We encourage both parties to stay at the table and work toward a fair and sustainable agreement that supports patients and staff.”<\/p>\n The ministry did not respond to follow-up questions on the funding stipulations and whether or not the ministry would get involved if it was deemed to be misused.<\/p>\n Natalie Mehra, CEO of the Ontario Health Coalition, feels the ministry should be investigating given the allegations about funding.<\/p>\n \u201cThere’s a fact to be checked at the centre of this,\u201d she said. \u201cThe minister should, when thousands of people lose their health services, should actually take some action and try and get things fixed.\u201d<\/p>\n Mehra is urging all parties involved to think of the patients in need.<\/p>\n \u201cThey need to get back and settle the situation with the nurses in that family health team and restore the relationships and restore the services that are vital,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n There are currently no meetings set between the workers and their employer.<\/p>\n In their statement NYFHT representatives wrote, \u201cWe are eager to return to the bargaining table and work collaboratively with union leadership towards a fair and sustainable collective agreement that supports our staff and ensures ongoing, high-quality care for our community.\u201d<\/p>\n