A labour dispute between Tina Irvine and Stanford Place hasn’t been completely resolved, but the union says people should rest assured it is in process and Irvine is back at work.
Margi Blamey, communications officer for the Hospital Employees’ Union//CUPE, said Irvine has received a lot of support in the community since she was suspended for a week and half without pay in February for speaking about conditions at Parksville’s Stanford Place at a public meeting.
Irvine has been back at work since the suspension ended but the union is still pushing Stanford to pay Irvine the lost wages.
Frank Sutherland in Summerland said in a letter to the editor he was considering relocating to the area and moving his wife into Stanford, but “would not entertain relocating to this facility until we are certain that VIHA has accomplished what we think they should accomplish with this contracted management group.”
Blamey said it is wonderful to hear about that kind of community support and while they don’t have any idea of the timeline for a total resolution, people should be comforted by the fact that someone as dedicated as Irvine is still working there.
She said at this point it is a matter of a slow, back and forth process discussing the details and negotiating and the public will be notified of any developments.