Health News For Central West

Quotes

"Protecting workers and cutting red tape go hand in hand. By modernizing outdated rules and extending WSIB coverage across the residential care sector, we’re giving workers the protection they deserve while providing clarity and consistency for employers. This is smart, responsible regulation that strengthens Ontario’s workforce."

- Andrea Khanjin
Minister of Red Tape Reduction

"Under the leadership of Premier Ford, protecting Ontario's world-class frontline care workforce is a top priority for our government. The extension of mandatory WSIB coverage across the sector ensures that all residential care facility and group home service providers, regardless of which model they are providing care under, are protected in the workplace."

- Sylvia Jones
Deputy Premier and Minister of Health

"Frontline care workers in Hamilton Mountain show up every day to support some of the most vulnerable members of our community and they deserve to know that they are protected when they do so. By extending mandatory Workplace Safety and Insurance Board coverage to privately operated residential care facilities and group homes, our Ontario government is closing long-standing gaps and ensuring fairness across the sector."

- Monica Ciriello
Member of Provincial Parliament for Hamilton Mountain

"By expanding WSIB coverage, we are taking an important step to better protect thousands of frontline care workers here in Hamilton and across Ontario. These workers are essential to our communities and this change will help ensure they have the support they need, when they need it."

- Neil Lumsden
Member of Provincial Parliament for Hamilton East – Stoney Creek

"A decades-long fight to bring security and fairness to care workers has been won. For workers in group homes and retirement homes, expanding WSIB coverage to their workplaces is more than a policy change. This is recognition of the dignity of care work, the value of those who do it, and the responsibility we all share to stand behind the people who spend their lives caring for others. We applaud the Government of Ontario for listening to workers and taking action to better protect the workers who care for some of the most vulnerable people in our communities."

- Tyler Downey
President, SEIU Healthcare Canada

"We welcome this step toward strengthening protections for frontline staff across residential and community-based care. Ensuring that workers are supported when they experience workplace injury is critical to maintaining a stable, high-quality system of care. We look forward to seeing how this approach can be implemented in a way that is sustainable and equitable across the sector."

- Omar Mahamed
Executive Director, Choices

"The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) applauds Minister Piccini’s decision to expand access to WSIB coverage to workers employed in residential care and group homes in Ontario, the majority of whom are women and from equity deserving communities. By acknowledging that workers’ compensation is a right, the Minister has taken a much-needed step toward ensuring that all Ontario workers have access to the benefits to which they are entitled."

- Laura Walton
President, Ontario Federation of Labour

"WSIB delivers what workers need most: comprehensive coverage, real protection and peace of mind. For the front-line caregivers to whom WSIB will now be extended, especially those holding down multiple part-time jobs, these benefits are not abstract. The introduction of WSIB coverage to these workplaces means real support for workers who, until now, were vulnerable to the economic ravages of lost-time injuries and occupational diseases. We are incredibly grateful to Minister Piccini and the Ford Government for standing up for these workers across this province. This is the right outcome and a credit to the workers who persisted in bringing attention to this matter."

- Ian DeWaard
Provincial Director, CLAC

"At Threads of Life we see daily the lifelong impacts a work-related injury or illness can have on an individual, family and community. Extending coverage to mitigate those impacts is good news. Even better news will be the day when such coverage is no longer needed because injuries, illnesses and deaths at work have been eliminated. Together with our partners, Threads of Life is committed to achieving that vision."

- Eugene Gutierrez
Executive Director, Threads of Life - Association for Workplace Tragedy Family Support

"Workers in care settings play a critical role in supporting Ontarians to live well and with dignity. These are essential roles that carry significant physical and mental demands over time. Today’s announcement is an important step towards recognizing both the value of care providers and the inherent hazards that come with the job."

- Liv Mendelsoh
Executive Director, Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence