The health care funding announced in the provincial budget is a mere ‘drop in the bucket’ according to the New Brunswick Nurses Union.

First vice-president Maria Richard said recruitment and retention is vital right now but the budget didn’t contain much to address it.

Richard said members are feeling disrespected especially after Nova Scotia announced financial incentives for its nurses earlier this week.

“Nurses have told us it’s a slap in the face. We’re fielding all sorts of emails and phone calls saying, what are we doing about this? What can we do?” noted Richard.

“The most important message is that some nurses have had enough and are going to look into either becoming a travel nurse or moving to Nova Scotia.”

Since before the pandemic, Richard added nurses feel they have sacrificed their personal life along with their mental and physical health to help keep the health care system afloat.