Nurses employed by the Victorian Order of Nurses want wages similar to those given to those working in hospitals.

It is one of the major issues the Ontario Nurses Association is taking to the negotiating table as contract talks with the V.O.N. get underway.

V.O.N. nurses provide home-care services to seniors who still live in their homes

The nurses’ association says the difference is over $20 an hour.

Chair of the Bargaining Team, Lorna Thompson, says nurses are experiencing increased workloads as the population ages.

“We are educated in the same way. We have the same licensing, and we do absolutely the same work. I would even say our work sometimes becomes more critical because you’re in a one-to-one,” says Thompson.

“We deserve equal pay. We’re demanding it, and we’re not going to settle. Not this time.”

Thompson adds nurses’ wages are 14% less than what they were 10 years ago when factoring in inflation.

She says some have taken on a second job to make ends meet as the wages do not reflect travelling costs or the added workload as the population ages.

Thompson says that workload also has an impact on the level of care nurses try to provide.

“When a nurse gets a worksheet with 16 clients to work in a seven-and-a-half-hour day, how does she do that? We are travelling fair distances. No lunch, no time to catch your breath again. What kind of care are we giving our patients?”

The ONA says home care nurses are among the lowest paid in the province, despite facing some of the worst working conditions.”

President Erin Ariss says some have opted to leave the profession, leaving the system hanging by a thread.

“Unless the VON board of directors negotiates fair pay and improves benefits, there won’t be anyone left to provide the services we need,” says Ariss.

The nurses’ last contract expired at the end of March 2025.