May 16, 2024
Greater oversight is welcomed by the Manitoba Nurses Union, saying nurses in the private and public sectors need to be held to the same standards and operate under similar working conditions. In the first nine months of FY2023-2024, the Man. government spent $56 million on hiring nurses from 75 private staffing agencies to compensate for shortfalls in the public care system. In the interest of fiscal responsibility, the government will require agencies to become validated to continue working with public health service providers. Many nurses have left Manitoba's public healthcare system for private agencies amid frustrations over mandatory overtime, nurse-to-patient ratios and working conditions.