The Registered Nurses’ Union says now is the time for an independent Health Sector Safety Council to be implemented in this province.
The call comes on the eve of the National Day of Mourning for workers who have been injured or killed on the job.
President Yvette Coffey says violence against health care workers is higher than in any other sector in the province.
She says every other day a Registered Nurse or Nurse Practitioner makes an injury claim with WorkplaceNL, and if LPNs are factored in, a claim is made every day.
According to the union—they and the Federation of Labour—have been asking for an independent health sector safety council for several years.
However, despite the evidence presented, progress has been “glacial.”
Coffey says workplace injuries and deaths are “100 per cent preventable” and “there should be nothing preventing [them] from striving to reach that goal.”