Printer-friendly version
Striking Revelstoke paramedics Suzie Cameron (left) and Antoinette Halberstadt collected signatures in support of the paramedics outside the Revelstoke post office on April 15. Aaron Orlando/Times Review
Updated: April 21, 2009 10:13 AM
Striking Revelstoke paramedics were seeking support for their cause outside the Revelstoke post office on April 15 by asking residents to sign post cards supporting their positions. The cards will then be forwarded on to Premier Gordon Campbell.
The strike started on April 1, but since paramedics are considered an essential service they have remained on the job.
Lead shop steward for Revelstoke paramedics Antoinette Halberstadt said that in two hours outside the post office in Revelstoke on April 15 they managed to gather 54 signatures on the post cards.
She says that rural stations such as Revelstoke are facing unique challenges.
There are two levels of on-call status. The first, known as ‘kilo’ requires paramedics to carry a pager and be available to respond to the station in short period of time. They are paid $2 per hour while on call and get regular wages if they are called out.
The second on-call status, known as ‘foxtrot’ sees paramedics remain at the station on call. They are paid $10 per hour for this status, and again receive full wages if they are called out on a call.
Halberstadt says that in order to make a living Revelstoke paramedics have to put in an inordinate amount of time working shifts which are usually divided between the two different on-call levels. For example, if a paramedic is available five days and five nights per week, half of those shifts will be kilo shifts and the other half will be foxtrot shifts. “We’re constantly sleep-deprived. Our lives are in chaos,” she says.
Combined with a current staff shortage (the Revelstoke station is looking to hire three new paramedics and currently has eight on staff), Halberstadt says that the community often goes without adequate ambulance coverage.
“In this two week period last week and this week there have been five nights where we’ve only had one ambulance in town. We haven’t been able to staff two ambulances,” she said, saying this was because one member was taking a vacation and adding the same thing would happen if someone got sick.
She said in the two-week period starting on April 20 there will be four days and 10 nights when there will only be one ambulance staffed in Revelstoke. “Once again, because another person who has worked around the clock is having to take a break,” said Halberstadt.
She says that in order to make a living Revelstoke paramedics have to put in an inordinate amount of time working various shifts.
Halberstadt says if they managed to hire all three of the new employees Revelstoke is looking to hire, the amount of available shifts would be reduced because they would be distributed amongst more staff members, meaning it would remain difficult for paramedics to earn enough to support themselves.
Halberstadt said she’s heard some paramedics talk about moving out of town to larger centres where more work was available if that situation arose. “And that’s what happens constantly at the smaller stations is the migration to the bigger stations because that’s the only way to make a living since you’re only paid your paramedic rate when you are actually doing calls.”
In stations where there is a full-time staff member, they are asking that their partner, who is now on the foxtrot status, to also get paid full time for those shifts.
In addition to calls for pay increases, paramedics want the foxtrot shifts to be pensionable. Currently, while they are on call, the standby wage is not pensionable.
They want to “significantly close the gap” between the wages of paramedics and those of other emergency services such as RCMP or firefighters.
Halberstadt says paramedics in Revelstoke are exhausted and overworked, and feel their needs have been ignored. “We are taken for granted by this government. They took us for granted with regards to our ambulance station. It’s just an assumption that we will soldier on regardless of what shitty conditions we are working under. And they need to hear from the public and we got a wonderful response yesterday.” she said.
She says they are asking for an independent mediator to deal with the current strike.
They are also calling for public support for their cause.
“We really would like this to be all over, and to be able to just get back to focusing on our work. All of us, our Revelstoke crew and crews everywhere, we want to serve the public. We want to be able to do our job but we want to be able to do it without making us sick,” she said.
