By The Canadian Press
A woman walks outside St. Boniface Hospital on July 12, 2017, in Winnipeg. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods)
Nurses at Manitoba’s second-largest hospital have declared it too dangerous to work in and are discouraging union members from accepting jobs or shifts there.
The Manitoba Nurses Union says 94 per cent of its members at St. Boniface Hospital in Winnipeg have voted in favour of what they call “grey listing” the facility due to serious safety concerns.
Union president Darlene Jackson says members are tired of working in an environment where security issues are acknowledged but not being resolved.
Among safety measures the union is calling for are the installation of panic alarms, appropriate screening at entrances, and shuttles for staff to and from the parkade.
This is the third time in seven months members have voted to grey list a hospital, with Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre and Thompson General Hospital getting the designation last year.
The province recently announced it plans to hire more security, including five new positions in Thompson, and will be expanding a security app that provides safety alerts to employees to more hospitals.
