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EDMONTON — Formal mediation resumes this week between the Health Sciences Association of Alberta and Alberta Health Services, with the union citing rising public support and evidence of a severe staffing crisis in the province’s health care system.
The union says its “Put Yourself in Their Shoes” campaign gathered more than 1,000 messages and signatures in under 24 hours, signalling strong backing for about 22,000 allied health professionals including respiratory therapists, paramedics and pharmacists who have been without a contract for 18 months. HSAA president Mike Parker said the volume of public messages reinforces what the union has long insisted: Albertans value the work of these front-line staff.
HSAA released data showing vacancy rates of 22 per cent for cardiovascular perfusionists, 16.7 per cent for radiation therapists and 13 per cent for psychologists. It also says advanced care paramedics are operating with 12 per cent of positions unfilled and logging more than 30,000 overtime hours every month.
Alberta Health Services’ most recent annual report for 2023-24 notes improvement in several areas, including surgical performance, with 98.3 per cent of targeted procedures completed and a reduction of more than 5,000 cases on wait lists compared with the previous year. In its strategic workforce plan, AHS acknowledges recruitment and retention remain challenges but describes them as part of a broader multi-year transition rather than an immediate crisis.
As the two sides meet from November 12 to 14 under mediation, HSAA says it is ready to bargain in good faith and is calling for improved wages, benefits and staffing commitments. The provincial government has not detailed a counter-offer ahead of mediation but continues to focus on health system reform and workforce sustainability rather than major pay increases
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