Dynacare employees working in laboratories in Winnipeg and Brandon are on the brink of a strike due to heavy workloads and stagnant wages, according to their union. The Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals announced that 99.7% of laboratory technicians and technologists voted in favor of strike action, with 87% of nearly 350 Dynacare workers participating in the vote.
These workers have been without a contract since the expiration of the previous one on April 1. They are stationed at Dynacare’s 22 laboratory and health service centers in and around Winnipeg and Brandon, including the main lab on King Edward Street in Winnipeg. In the fiscal year 2024-25, they collectively conducted over 15 million lab tests, as per the union’s press release.
The president of MAHCP, Jason Linklater, highlighted that while the workload of these employees has increased, their salaries have remained stagnant. Currently, Dynacare’s wages for laboratory professionals are significantly lower, ranging from 20 to 50% behind the compensation received by Shared Health employees performing similar specialized tasks. Linklater emphasized that such disparities in wages and benefits are making recruitment and retention extremely challenging.
Negotiations for a new collective agreement between Dynacare and MAHCP commenced in February after the previous agreement ended on March 31. Despite entering mediation in July, the parties have not been able to reach a tentative agreement. No further bargaining or mediation sessions have been scheduled at this time.
The union has not set a deadline for giving strike notice as they aim to avoid disrupting lab services in the province. Linklater stated that strike notice would only be issued if bargaining dates are not arranged to continue the negotiation process. The union pointed out that Dynacare currently holds a monopoly on non-hospital testing in Manitoba, having acquired Unicity Labs in 2017, making it the sole private outpatient provider for laboratory services in the province. Additionally, the union highlighted that Dynacare’s parent company, Labcorp, has seen a significant increase in profits over the past two years.