News & Updates

Negotiations to determine the pay, benefits and protections for your next contract have begun. The Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) bargaining committee, led by HSA, met with the employer for initial discussions on March 6. THE NEGOTIATING TEAM The bargaining committee team includes professional negotiators, board directors, and members elected by their colleagues to represent them in the talks...

“As the president of the union representing thousands of hospital pharmacists across the province, I hear too often about the urgent need to patch a massive hole in our public health care system. Too many of our family members and neighbours are having to make impossible choices like paying rent or paying for their child’s diabetes medication – problems that...

Statement from Kane Tse, President of Health Sciences Association on BC Budget 2025: As the union representing over 23,000 specialized health professionals in BC, we are very concerned about the impact of Trump’s tariffs on British Columbia’s economy, and our health care system. While the government is forced to fight an uninvited economic battle, we must not lose sight of...

Today – Friday, February 28 – marks two important deadlines that are part of the transition to the profile-based classification system: Retro Pay. If you are entitled to retro pay, today is the deadline for the employer to pay you. Please check your recent pay stubs to ensure that you were paid correctly. If you have not received your retro...

HSA members working in child development centres and services are invited to join with other HSA members working with children and youth with support needs at a special briefing on HSA's ongoing advocacy on this topic. HSA has been calling for changes to the child development sector for many years. This advocacy has positioned HSA to be a leading voice...

HSA’s first-ever Equity Summit, held in Vancouver February 19, brought together HSA members to connect and learn about a more equitable working world. Following a welcome and opening from Elder Ann Seaweed, member of HSA’s Indigenous Circle and a social worker at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital, HSA President Kane Tse introduced the guest speakers who shared their perspectives on the...

For most of us, the ability to speak is something we take for granted. For Meara Brown’s patients, however, communication is a skill they must relearn entirely. As a speech language pathologist specializing in laryngectomy care with Island Health, Meara restores voices—both literally and figuratively—by helping people who have undergone the removal of their larynx regain their ability to speak...

Unfortunately, we’ve become aware that email scammers are targeting HSA members, activists, and staff with malicious email messages that impersonate our senior leadership. The members and staff who received these messages became suspicious as, upon a closer look, the messages came from an email address that is not associated with HSA. Please be assured that HSA takes online and data...

Most HSA members covered by the HSPBA collective agreement have had a fairly smooth transition to the new profile-based classification system since it was fully implemented on December 6, 2024. In many cases, the new system has resulted in an additional pay increase for members, and if that’s you, please take a look at the new wage schedules to confirm...

Editor’s note: Lisa has been elected to represent HSA Region 5 on the Board of Directors and will join the Board of Directors on adjournment of the 2025 HSA annual convention Friday, April 11. When a child walks into a hospital, it’s not only a sickness or physical condition they’re battling—it’s also their fear and uncertainty. For years, certified child...