Eleven locations now covered under union
Seventy-five LifeLabs employees who work as lab technologists, technicians, assistants, phlebotomists (blood collectors) and support staff in north Simcoe County in Ontario voted to join the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) Oct. 24.
"During our organizing drive, it became clear that these employees have had enough of being underpaid," said Sean Allen, chair of OPSEU's Canadian Blood Services and Diagnostics Division. "They were also unhappy with poor working conditions and the way management lacked respect for their qualifications or appreciation for their contributions to the success of the company."
This group of LifeLabs professionals is the first in Ontario to be unionized, according to OPSEU.
Employees in the new bargaining unit work out of 11 locations, including Barrie, Orillia, Collingwood, Wasaga Beach, Stayner, and CFB Borden.
LifeLabs is a Canadian-owned, private, for-profit medical laboratory services company. It provides patients and health care providers convenient access to diagnostic laboratory services and is primarily funded by OHIP. LifeLabs performs more than 100 million laboratory tests every year, helping health care providers diagnose, treat, monitor, and prevent disease in patients.
