Ontario
"Rise Up For Long-Term Care" Rallies Call for Government Action to Protect Seniors in Care
Queen's Park, October 4, 2021
Rallies were held in 18 Ontario cities, including at Queen's Park on
October 4, the first day of the fall sitting of the Ontario Provincial
Legislature. Organized by the Ontario Health Coalition (OHC), the aim
of the "Rise Up for Long-Term Care" rallies was to publicly highlight
the lack of any action by the Ford government to protect seniors
living in long-term care (LTC) facilities. People who participated,
mainly at the constituency offices of Conservative MPPs, denounced the
callous disregard of the Ford government for the lives of seniors living in
LTC facilities and their loved ones which has been brought into sharp
focus by the COVID-19 pandemic.
 Close
to 4,000 Ontario seniors have died of COVID-19 in LTC homes, the
majority in homes operated for profit by private owners. Numerous
reports, a public inquiry and actions by workers and their unions and
families of seniors have highlighted the terrible conditions in many of
the LTC homes, including severe staff shortages, lack of
protective equipment for workers, cuts to care and meal programs and
overall neglect.
In the face of all the evidence, the Ford government has done
absolutely nothing to protect seniors and workers and improve
conditions. The Ford government has instead strengthened the hand of
the private owners, enabling them to continue exploiting the workers
and compromising the security, well-being and health of the workers and
their
residents. Speakers at the action at Queen's Park and others across the
province were united in calling for the defeat of the Ford
Conservatives at the next provincial election on June 2, 2022. Health
care workers, union representatives and leaders of the OHC spoke out on
the track record of the Ford government. Some quoted Premier Ford's
public statement when news of mounting deaths hit the headlines in the
early days of the pandemic, that he would place an "iron ring" around
LTC homes to protect the vulnerable seniors
living there. As it turns out, one speaker said, the only "iron ring"
Ford placed was one that protected the "vultures" who own and run these
facilities to squeeze out maximum profits on the backs of the workers,
residents and their families. They cited Bill 218 which was rushed
through the legislature last fall which indemnifies long-term care
homes against lawsuits for negligence resulting in harm and death in
the COVID-19 pandemic, making it more difficult for families to seek
justice for their loved ones who died or were harmed in other ways.
Furthermore, to add insult to injury, these same companies are now
being given 30-year extensions on their operating licenses which allow
them to continue to operate with impunity. Because of the low wages and
terrible working conditions, it is reported that at least 30 per cent
of personal support workers are planning to leave their jobs,
which will further degrade the quality of care for residents.
 At
Queen's Park, Natalie Mehra, the Executive Director of the OHC, and
others, denounced the empty promises, lies and smoke-and-mirrors
tactics aimed at bamboozling the public into believing that action is
being taken to address the serious crisis in long-term care. She noted
that there has been no monitoring of any sort of the running of
these facilities to ensure a consistent level of care. In fact since
the Ford government came to power it has abandoned inspections
altogether and enabled the owners of privately run homes to monitor
themselves with disastrous results. Not a single owner has been held to
account, she pointed out.
One of the speakers at the Queen's Park rally, Dr. Vivian
Stamatopoulos, an LTC researcher and advocate, stated "When are we
going to get a lick of justice? The Ford government is spitting on the
graves of the people who died."
The families have not given up and many continue to seek justice
through lawsuits against the government. Lawyer Melissa Miller who
represents many families whose loved ones died in the LTC homes
during the pandemic said that she has reviewed countless documents and
reports calling for reforms in the manner in which LTC
facilities are run in Ontario but absolutely nothing has been done.
A number of speakers at the rally at Queen's Park denounced the
government's plan to continue to expand private long-term care capacity
and to look at the recruitment of temporary foreign workers with little
training to work as personal support workers and in other jobs. The
plan was announced by Minister of Long Term Care Rod Phillips
on August 12 in the name of alleviating the crisis in LTC homes.
The rallies expressed the determination of the OHC, unions
representing LTC workers, family members and support groups to continue
the fight for an end to private-for-profit care and for a publicly
funded and publicly run long-term care system in Ontario that is
adequately staffed so that seniors can live with dignity, safety and
security. 
This article was published in
October 6, 2021 - No. 92
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/WF2021/Articles/WO08923.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca
Email: editor@cpcml.ca
|
