

Chris Herhalt, CP24.com





A report says the City of Toronto’s paramedic service faces a litany of problems — ranging from high workload to management practices — that have contributed to extremely poor morale among frontline workers.

Compiled by CUPE local 416, which represents unionized paramedics, the report says calls for service from paramedics have risen between three and five per cent each year, but the number of paramedics on the job has stayed basically the same between 1992 and 2012.

The report lists a number of problems in the paramedics’ work environment, including logistical issues, poor treatment of injured staff by management, issues with off-loading patients at hospital, and managers who “communicate ineffectively.”

The union says lower morale is leading to higher staff turnover, lower productivity and absenteeism, which increases costs to the taxpayer. The deficit also causes stress, which the report says can lead to substance abuse, post traumatic stress disorder, mental illness and suicide.

They’re asking the City of Toronto to work with them and hire an outside consultant to create a workplace wellness program and feedback system, along with other changes, to restore positivity at work.