The unions representing about 75,000 Ontario hospital workers, including staff at Brampton Civic, announced Monday, April 23, that labour negotiations have produced a tentative new contract.

On April 18, hospital employees joined other members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) who rallied outside a number of Ontario hospitals to draw attention to stalled contract talks.

The Ontario Council of Hospital Unions/CUPE, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Healthcare and Unifor joined forces in trying to compel the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) to return to the bargaining table.

The OHA bargains on behalf of hospitals.

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Union negotiators were asking hospitals to abandon demands described as major contract concessions and a bargaining position that failed to address workplace-violence concerns.

In addition to new language on workplace violence, the tentative deal includes a wage increase and no concessions, a union news release said Monday.

“The hospitals had offered inferior wages and were looking to take away hard-earned rights. To achieve a contract without take-aways is, in no small part, because hospital workers showed visible solidarity for their bargaining teams. We want to acknowledge the determination of SEIU, CUPE and Unifor members to mobilize for a fair contract,” said Katha Fortier, assistant to the Unifor national president.

CUPE 145 represents about 1,500 workers — from nurses to housekeeping staff — at hospitals in Georgetown, Etobicoke and Brampton.

More than 900 of those workers are in Brampton facilities.

Union members are scheduled to vote on the contract over the next few weeks. The existing four-year deal expired Sept. 29, 2017.