Unifor members brought the fight for public health care to Parliament Hill this week, meeting directly with MPs and senators and joining a public rally to call for action as shortages and long waits continue to strain services in communities across the country.

Members joined the Canadian Health Coalition’s Parliament Hill lobby days on Feb. 9 and 10, raising concerns about the expansion of private, for-profit delivery, staffing pressures, and access to care.

“We are facing the most consequential economic crisis Canada has ever seen,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “We cannot allow anyone to use this economic crisis to roll back the public, universal health care we know Canadians deserve. We need to keep organizing, keep fighting and keep standing up for health care workers and the public system we all need and rely on. You can’t have a strong economy without strong public health care.”

The coalition said more than 200 advocates from across the country took part in lobbying meetings, bringing front-line realities into discussions about federal funding, national standards and accountability in health care.

“Workers in Ontario are living the consequences of a system under strain, and people are worried about what happens when private delivery expands,” said Samia Hashi, Unifor Ontario regional director. “We made it clear the way forward is rebuilding public capacity and addressing staffing shortages, not downloading care to for-profit providers.”

For Unifor members, the message was consistent across meetings: fix what is broken by building up the public system and addressing staffing shortages, not outsourcing care to private providers.

As part of the lobby week, a public rally was held on Parliament Hill on Feb. 10, bringing together Unifor members, health care workers, community advocates and allies to defend public health care and reject a move toward two-tier access.

“Atlantic Canadians are feeling the same pressures, including shortages, closures and longer waits,” said Jennifer Murray, Unifor Atlantic regional director. “Members raised what they are seeing at home and what needs to change so care is there when people need it.”

Unifor says the work will continue beyond Parliament Hill. The union will keep working with allies to bring members’ experiences to decision-makers and to push for improvements that strengthen public, accessible care across Canada.