NDP MPP Robin Lennox calls on Ford government to close wage gap and protect Ontario’s nurses

QUEEN’S PARK — Ontario NDP Shadow Minister for Mental Health and Addictions with responsibility for Primary Care, Robin Lennox (Hamilton Centre), pressed the Ford government today in Question Period today to end the wage gap for community nurses and stop the funding cuts that are putting patients and health care workers at risk.

Lennox pointed to 44 members of the Ontario Nurses’ Association at the North York Family Health Team, who are currently on strike after years of being underpaid compared to their hospital counterparts. These workers provide comprehensive care to more than 95,000 patients yet remain among the lowest paid in Ontario’s health system.

“Community nurses have been underpaid for years while doing the same vital work as hospital nurses,” said Lennox. “They want to be back at work caring for patients, but they deserve fair compensation and respect from this government.”

Lennox also criticized the Minister of Health’s directive for hospitals to cut budgets, warning that it will worsen Ontario’s ongoing nursing shortage. The Financial Accountability Office has projected the loss of over 7,200 hospital nursing positions by 2027 if funding doesn’t improve.

“Anyone who’s been to a hospital lately knows there’s no surplus of nurses,” said Lennox. “Instead of forcing more cuts, this government should be funding hospitals properly and setting safe nurse-to-patient ratios that save lives.”

Lennox reiterated that the government must take immediate action to ensure nurses are fairly compensated and that hospitals have the resources they need to provide safe, quality care. Investing in Ontario’s nursing workforce, she added, is essential to fixing the province’s health care crisis and rebuilding trust in the public system.