On June 27, 2019, the Health Sciences Association of Alberta (HSAA) served the Government of Alberta with a statement of claim, which you can see here. Essentially, we are claiming that the Government acted unconstitutionally when they delayed the date for arbitration on our wage re-opener in Bill 9 Public Sector Arbitration Deferral Act. HSAA, along with its president, Michael Parker, and South District board member, Jason Soklofske, have been named as the plaintiffs. Dan Scott of Seveny, Scott will act as our counsel.
As you may be aware, the Alberta Teachers’ Association, the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees and the United Nurses of Alberta have filed similar statements of claim.
As Mike Parker has said previously said: This government was elected on a mandate of jobs, pipelines and the economy, not on picking a fight with working people. They consistently promised not to attack front-line workers. In just two months, they have already broken that promise.
The suit is an important step in our fight back against a government that seems uncaring about the law and due process when it comes to dealing with its workers. However, it could be years before we see any tangible results. The legal process is slow.
In the meantime, please read Mike Parker’s column about these first months of Kenney’s government to see more immediate ways that we can fight back. It is only when we work together, with all the tactics available to us, that we will be successful in stopping the attacks on our jobs and on the services that Albertans need.
