The NSNU affiliates with other nursing and labour organizations across the country, including the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions and its member organizations, the Canadian Labour Congress, the Nova Scotia Federation of Labour, and others. We support their campaigns, and encourage NSNU member involvement where possible.

The CFNU and its provincial Member Organizations are passionate advocates for nurses and the public on issues that matter. Learn more about the CFNU's current priorities here, and take action for change. 

Beyond Equity: Taking Action to Address Indigenous-Specific Racism in Nursing

Beyond Equity: Taking Action to Address Indigenous-Specific Racism in Nursing is an educational resource to help advance the long overdue work on truth and reconciliation within the nursing and broader health care community in Canada. This discussion paper was authored by Dr. Liquaa Wazni and Dr. Lisa Bourque Bearskin, with important contributions from the Indigenous Health Research Nursing Chairs.

Themes in the report include:
• Reconciling Indigenous health and transforming health care
• Confronting the colonial health legacy
• Structural and systemic health transformation efforts
• Actionable and applicable strategies

Bolstering Pathways to Practice: Empowering IENs in Canada

Bolstering Pathways to Practice: Empowering Internationally Educated Nurses in Canada outlines key recommendations to break down barriers for IENs living in Canada to practice nursing and excel within the profession. The report includes detailed recommendations, including a standardised route to licensure for IENs across Canada, wrap-around supports for IENs and effective workplace integration for IENs.

Safe Hours Save Lives

Safe Hours Saves Lives delivers a critical examination of escalating burnout among Canadian nurses due to excessive work hours, highlighting the increase in overtime and its impact on nurse well-being and patient safety. It calls for legislative reforms to mandate safe hours of work regulations, robust fatigue management strategies, and supportive work environments, similar to safety measures in other industries, to protect nurses and patients. The report provides a blueprint for creating a sustainable and safe future in nursing and emphasizes the need for immediate action to reverse the current trends.

Sustaining Nursing in Canada

This report proposes a set of concrete actionable solutions to help meaningfully solve the health care staffing crisis. The CFNU worked with the Canadian Health Workforce to present the magnitude of the nursing criris and the known solutions to address it. 

Authored by University of Ottawa researchers Dr. Houssem Eddine Ben Ahmed and Dr. Ivy Lynn Bourgeault, the report focuses on multi-layered solutions that improve health care working conditions and health workforce planning to better weather future crises. 

Complete the Recovery

Fix the nursing shortage. End the health care crisis.

The health care crisis isn't over and our Premiers need to finish the job - fix the nursing crisis and complete the recovery. Sign the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions' petition to address unsustainable hours, understaffed shifts and hospitals overcapacity. Take Action. 

Canadians Want Pharmacare

Canadians want pharmacare, but we need the full dose. 

Canada is the only country in the world with a universal health care system that does not provide universal coverage for prescription medicines used outside of hospitals. The CFNU, and its member organizations are lobbying for a national public pharmacare program that is: Universal, Public, Comprehensive, Accessible and Portable. 

Mental Disorder Symptoms Among Nurses in Canada

A first-of-its-kind study on mental disorders among Canada’s nurses has been released today, revealing widespread and severe symptoms of PTSD, anxiety, depression, burnout and other conditions.

The study, Mental Disorder Symptoms Among Nurses in Canada, is based on pan-Canadian data from 7,358 regulated nurses (RNs, LPNs, RPNs, NPs), collected in 2019 by the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions and researchers Nicholas Carleton, PhD, and Andrea Stelnicki, PhD, of the University of Regina.

Violence and Harassment are Not Part of the Job!

The Nova Scotia Federation of Labour knows that in today’s workplaces, the rise in workplace violence is a pressing concern, especially for those in positions of public exposure. Frontline workers are our everyday heroes who often face violence and harassment at work. This issue is a social problem and demands immediate action.

This campaign commits to eliminating workplace abuse and ensuring all workers can carry out their duties free from fear.

Join the Federation of Labour Campaign that Violence is not part of the job and sign to send a message to Nova Scotia Members of the Legislature (MLAs) officials holding them accountable for the working conditions and abuse experienced by frontline workers.

NSFL Paid Sick Days Campaign

The Nova Scotia Federation of Labour has launched a letter writing campaign urging the government to ensure 10 paid sick days to all Nova Scotians, in accordance with a commitment made by the federal government.

The Pharmacare Act, Bill C-64

Members of the Canadian Health Coalition welcome the introduction of the Pharmacare Act. This landmark legislation is an important first step in continuing progress toward a universal national pharmacare program.

CLC urges the government to ensure the legislation adheres to single-payer, universal, public delivery in partnership with provinces and territories, along with adequate funding and accountability measures, in accordance with the principles of the Canada Health Act.

Create Safe Long-Term Care

The issue:

Not enough care: Too few staff mean too many residents do not receive safe and appropriate long-term care. Governments have failed to address the needs of our aging population despite years of warnings, leaving too many people without necessary care and too many staff facing precarious, stressful working conditions.

Failed regulation: Detailed regulations that primarily target staff means they spend more time documenting rather than caring. Combined with weak standards in some areas and poor enforcement, residents’ and care-givers’ lives are put at risk.

Deadly profit: The pandemic unleashed a nightmare for residents and families, especially in for-profit long-term care homes which had nearly twice as many residents infected during its first year and 78 percent more resident deaths compared with non-profit and municipal homes (Science Briefs of the Ontario COVID19 Science Advisory Table. 2021).

The solution:

National standards: Federal leadership is needed in program funding for long-term care, and so is legislation mandating enforceable national standards.

Staffing hours of care: Standards should include a requirement for a minimum of 4.1 hours of daily direct care for residents, with an appropriate number and skill mix of the workforce (Health Standards Organization, 2023).

Removing profit: For-profit long-term care homes and commercial delivery of care services should be phased out in favour of public, and non-profit management and operation where care will not come second to profits and shareholder dividends.

 

The Nova Scotia Nurses' Union is proud to support our fellow nurse unions across Canada in their campaigns, research and other advocacy initiatives.

On behalf of its members, NBNU campaigns for increased patient safety, fair and equitable working conditions in all healthcare settings and the continuance of publicly-funded, high-quality healthcare for all Canadians to name a few. Learn more about their advocacy efforts on their website.

The PEINU represents more than 1,400 Registered Nurses and Nurse Practitioners working in acute care, long term care, community care, mental health and addictions on P.E.I. Visit their website to read about what they've been working on.

The Registered Nurses’ Union Newfoundland & Labrador represents and advocates for its over 5,800 members in a number of ways. Some of these are direct advocacy efforts which are accomplished through the use of targeted campaigns and research and reports. Learn more about their advocacy efforts on their website.

As patient advocates, ONA members – RNs, nurse practitioners, registered practical nurses and health-care professionals – stand up and are committed to speaking out about many issues that directly affect their ability to deliver high quality patient/client/resident care. Their provincial campaigns aim to increase awareness and advocate for change.

 A source of strength and support for Manitoba nurses, their all-nurse membership and management structure ensures the union addresses pressures and challenges inherent in the nursing profession. Read their recent reports to learn what they've been working on.

Nurses are on the frontline of the most significant social challenges impacting Saskatchewan's communities. Watch their docuseries to learn more. 

Learn about how SUN is making a difference through their advocacy work in communities across their province. 

United Nurses of Alberta's 3 Rs campaign - Respect, Retain, Recruit - aims to shed light on the critical health care and nursing challenges within the province. More than simply raising awareness, this is a call for immediate, tangible solutions. 

BCNU campaigns have succeeded in winning more staffing, preserving services and convincing managers to listen and value nurses' solutions. Learn more about their ongoing advocacy efforts.