Minister Walker,

My name is Karrie Cosby and I work at the Country Lane Long Term Care home in Chatsworth Ontario, a small 34 bed home. I started there in March 1997 and work as a PSW, and in laundry and housekeeping. I am 44 years old and I am currently their longest serving employee.

I have been through SARS, served 10 years on the health and safety committee, served 10 years as a union steward, and have spent countless hours orienting new staff just to have them quit.

On May 28th, 2020 Premier Ford said he would do whatever it takes to change Long Term Care for our seniors. Well myself, my co-workers, and the residents we care for need more than just words.
We don’t run our daycares understaffed with ratio’s of 10 to 1 or more when someone calls in sick. So why do we settle for our parents and grandparents to have to wait to be fed, get dressed, go to the bathroom, or for someone to take them outside on a beautiful day?

Now we are dealing with a pandemic. The only human touch these residents have now is the dedicated staff that continue to take every precaution in the outside world so we don’t test positive and put those under our care at risk. We don’t take holidays to do things with our own family because of government orders and even when feeling physically exhausted or emotionally drained, we still always have smiles on our faces for our residents.

I had one resident say to me not long ago, “We are sitting ducks in here, just hoping and praying you staff don’t bring that virus in here!”

I am urging you to continue the pandemic pay for all workers affected by continuing emergency orders, revise orders so that employers must again honor vacation time, and revise Bill-124 to eliminate the 3 year 1% wage cap.

For those people in the world who have tried working in long term care and those that continue to, we know that there is not a running shoe fast enough or a muscle strong enough to do everything these residents need with the staffing shortages we have faced for years.

We need Premier Ford to make the kind of change so that people want to work in long term care and make it worth staying in.

At least with the pandemic pay it has helped recruit staff during this trying time and has given us a bit of hope that some day our seniors will get the care they deserve.

Sincerely

Karrie Cosby
PSW, Laundry Housekeeper, Union Steward and now a COVID-19 Warrior.