Marit Stiles and the Ontario NDP: On your side with more nurses and better care

TORONTO – Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles joined Erin Ariss, Provincial President of the Ontario Nurses Association, and Laura Walton, President of the Ontario Federation of Labour to commit to safe staffing ratios in hospitals.

After seven years of Doug Ford, more nurses than ever are leaving Ontario’s hospitals. Instead of respecting nurses and health care workers, Ford froze their wages and took them to court. He called them health care heroes while taking away their pay.

Marit Stiles and the Ontario NDP are on your side to create safe nurse-to-patient staffing ratios and hire more nurses so you can get the care you deserve.

“Across Ontario, we are seeing health care workers stretched thin. Long wait times, closed emergency rooms, patients receiving care in hallways – simply because there are not enough nurses. This has to end.

“As Canadians, we are proud of our public health care system. But without nurses, there is no health care. As Premier, I will hire more nurses, legislate safe staffing ratios, and make sure that we keep nurses in our hospitals so that you can get the care you deserve. I’m on your side.”

Marit Stiles and the Ontario NDP will:

• Establish and legislate safe nurse-to-patient staffing ratios to make sure that patients can get the care they deserve.
• Consult with nurses to make sure the ratios work for communities across the province.
• End the reliance on private, for-profit nursing agencies that are costing Ontario’s health care system hundreds of millions a year.
• We will scale up our nursing workforce, starting with the hiring of at least 15,000 nurses over the next three years to ensure safe staffing ratios and end the reliance on private agencies.