Canadian Hearing Services workers call on MPPs for help in 3rd week of strike

CBC News

· Posted: May 16, 2025 11:26 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hr ago

Now connected their 3rd week of picketing, national members are calling connected MPPs to "step in" and assistance to negotiate with Canadian Hearing Services (CHS).

"I truly deliberation that we're going to request the assistance of MPPs to measurement successful and marque definite that CHS is acting reasonably erstwhile it comes to employees," said Rachel Vandenberg, a CUPE 2073 subordinate and steward. Vandenberg is simply a intelligence wellness counsellor at the CHS office successful Kitchener.

CUPE 2073 national members crossed Ontario started picketing connected April 28 successful the hopes of securing longer contracts and higher wages for their members moving for CHS. 

In Waterloo region, national members were picketing Friday extracurricular MPP Brian Riddell's bureau successful Cambridge. Last week, they picketed astatine MPP Jess Dixon's office. 

The 2 sides past met connected May 6, but a corporate statement has not yet been reached.

Reaching an agreement

CBC K-W reached retired to CHS for comments, and they responded with an FAQ papers related to the on-going negotiations with CUPE 2073. 

In the document, CHS said they "proposed a generous renewal connection for a one-year corporate statement with the union."

"This connection includes an wide compensation summation of 4.9 per cent implicit the anterior year, reflecting our ongoing concern successful the wellbeing and information of our staff," the papers continued.

However, Vandenberg said this connection was not connected the array during the May 6 negotiations. 

"They had travel to america earlier with a connection that would beryllium dead, would beryllium cancelled successful 24 hours," she explained. 

Vandenberg said the national was precise hopeful heading to the dialog array saying they had a precise "thorough proposal," but that CHS "chose not to look astatine it oregon not to springiness immoderate answers." She said since the CHS did not person a antagonistic connection during the negotiation, determination was nary mode to bargain. 

But CHS said it was CUPE 2073 who declined their offer.

"CUPE Local 2073 walked distant from our generous offer," CHS said. "Shockingly, successful response, they are demanding an summation of 30.5 per cent implicit the people of 3 years."

Mara Waern, president of CUPE 2073, told CBC News Windsor that this was not the lawsuit — the 30.5 per cent is not a wage increase. Instead, the fig represented the full of the inputs from each the members' proposals, including much permission credits and pension adjustments, Waern explained.

What CUPE 2073 wants

Waern said the national is asking for a two-year contract, which includes a 2 per cent wage summation successful the archetypal twelvemonth and a 3 per cent summation successful the 2nd year.

Additionally, Vandenberg said the national is hoping to execute 3 things.

"We would similar to spot much just bargaining procedures successful spot astatine CHS…  We would similar for the MPPs to enactment unneurotic an audit of Canadian Hearing Services… [and] we would similar to spot a remedy for Bill 124," she said.

Bill 124 capped wage increases for broader nationalist assemblage workers astatine 1 per cent a twelvemonth for 3 years. 

It was recovered unconstitutional successful 2022, and unions crossed Ontario sought "retroactive wage increases supra the 1 per cent a twelvemonth and successful astir cases person been awarded considerably larger amounts."

CHS said they had not received backing related to Bill 124. 

"We proceed to advocator for our stock of backing to rectify the interaction of the overturned Bill for our employees," CHS said successful the FAQ document.

But Waern said this follows a pattern.

"[CHS is] doing everything they tin to interruption the national and disempower workers," said Waern. "CHS claims to person nary wealth to summation workers' wages, but they tin find wealth to summation elder managements' salaries."

Last year, Julia Dumanian, the CEO of CHS, had her yearly wage accrued from astir $200,000 a twelvemonth to $340,000. CUPE 2073 workers connected the different manus saw their wages falling "16 [per cent] behind ostentation nether Dumanian's tenure," according to the release.

Services volition continue

Vandenberg said the CHS's clients have already been impacted by the on-going onslaught saying they consciousness "very isolated" erstwhile they can't entree the services they beryllium on. 

"We don't person interpreters who are taking radical to aesculapian appointments, to ineligible appointments. We don't person Deafblind interveners to instrumentality Deafblind radical market shopping...  the database goes on," she said.

Vandenberg said they conscionable privation to spell backmost to doing their jobs.

"We person careers and we privation to beryllium successful our careers, but we truly privation to beryllium treated with respect and we privation a just deal," she said.

CHS said their services stay disposable connected a precedence ground contempt the labour disruption. 

"We are taking progressive steps to guarantee indispensable services proceed and that our clients — peculiarly those with the top needs — person support."

CHS said their interpreting services volition inactive beryllium available, including for idiosyncratic emergencies, aesculapian purposes, and different urgent matters.   

The 2 sides are expected to conscionable again connected May 21 done a mediator.