4540
A research study by the University of Guelph, and in partnership with the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions – Canadian Union of Public Employees (OCHU-CUPE).
You are invited to participate in a research study conducted by the Community Engaged Scholarship Institute and the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at the University of Guelph, and in partnership with the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions – Canadian Union of Public Employees (OCHU-CUPE).
The purpose of this research is to learn about experiences of violence in the workplace for OCHU members, and to better understand what factors may influence the rates and types of violence against health care workers. We are currently seeking OCHU members who are 18 years or older to complete a 10-15-minute anonymous survey.
The decision to participate is completely voluntary, and we will not ask for any information that directly identifies you within the survey. We will collect IP addresses, however, this will not be shared beyond the research team.
If you wish, you may enter a draw to win 1 of 20 gift cards, valued at $50 each. You may also give us your contact information if you are interested in being contacted for future research (e.g., interviews). To do so, you will be sent to a separate survey, where you will be asked to give us your contact information. You do not have to provide this information, and your contact information will not be linked in any way to your survey responses.
This project has been reviewed by the Research Ethics Board for compliance with federal guidelines for research involving human participants (REB# 2756).
Cupe 4540 Fighting Injustice in Healthcare
Cupe 4540 has a long history of being on the front lines to support healthcare workers, battling injustice. Giving truth to the lie the Ford government, hospitals and private for profit healthcare tell the public to forward their agendas at the cost and well being of Ontario's most vulnerable.
.Information picket at Bruyere Health - still working at reversing the hospital decision to eliminate 55 union positions.
.Information picket at Bruyere Health - still working at reversing the hospital decision to eliminate 55 union positions.
Brenda and Lisa - Granite Ridge 1st VP and alternate VP protesting against job losses at Villa Marconi.
Frank- Cupe 4540 VP at rally in front of Civic Hospital against Job cuts.
President and Rob - Nsg rep at Prime Minister Mark Carney's office protesting against privatization of healthcare
55 eliminated positions of our bargaining unit at Bruyere. Cupe 4540 held a rally in support and over 200 people support us!!!
Press conference against Bruyere cutting 55 Cupe positions
Union warns pending cuts will impact care (CTV - TV)
Ottawa’s Bruyère Health is laying off 55 front-line health workers, according to the union that represents nurses and personal support workers there.
In a release, the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions and the Canadian Union of Public Employees said the cuts would include 46 personal support workers and nine nurses. Those front-line health workers are among 60 layoffs overall at the hospital, the union said.
Douglas Currier, a registered practical nurse who is president of the CUPE union local at Bruyère Health, said he was shocked to hear about the layoffs, saying patient care at the hospital specializing in aging, rehabilitation and care for those with complex medical conditions was already compromised “due to threadbare staffing.
“It’s mind-boggling to hear about job cuts at our hospital when care is already at a breaking point,” Currier said in a statement.
Currier, who has worked as a nurse at the hospital for 30 years, said he had never seen the current level of exhaustion among staff.
Bruyère had an annual operating deficit of more than $12 million in 2025 — the largest among hospitals in Ottawa. It has been running deficits for the past several years, according to data compiled by the Investigative Journalism Bureau.
Bruyère Health is just the latest Ontario hospital to announce front-line staff cuts amid a provincial plan to have debt-ridden hospitals balance their budgets within three years.
Ontario’s Financial Accountability Office says the provincial budget plan will result in the loss of 2400 hospital beds and 9000 nurses and personal support workers by 2027-28. According to an analysis from the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions, that could result in the loss of 735 front-line health workers and up to 200 hospitals beds in Ottawa alone over the next two years.
Ontario’s hospitals have among the lowest funding per capita and bed count in Canada.
Elections Results
Granite Ridge Site Representatives
Welcome to your new executive members
1st VP Granite Ridge
Lisa Johnston
Alternate Site VP - Granite Ridge
Brenda Umuolo
Meet the union on December 9& 10
Granite Ridge
Bargaining update
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The union and employer bargained for 4 days over between mid-September to mid-October days
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Discussions were productive to begin with, but it soon became clear the employer was far from willing to meet requirements when it came to our monetary proposals
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The parties weren’t able to get a deal, so we requested a day of mediation with a provincially appointed conciliation officer
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We attended mediation in good faith in an effort to get deal and presented a settlement offer to the employer
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The employer said that they were not in a position to respond to our offer at mediation, which in our opinion showed that there was no possibility of us getting a deal at mediation
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The employer has had all our proposals since we started bargaining in mid September
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No excuse from the union’s perspective not to be prepared to respond to our settlement offer
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As the employer couldn’t respond to our settlement offer, we were forced to end the day of bargaining and ask to have the matter referred to arbitration
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We’ve let the employer know we’re open to continuing settlement discussions between now and arbitration
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We hope they take us up on it, but the employer is not happy with us calling them out on not coming to mediation with any authority to make a deal
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We’re not happy with them for dragging us to mediation, knowing what we were asking for without any real ability to get a deal
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