Paramedics rally outside Hamilton City Hall as union pushes for contract

Dozens of paramedics rallied outside Hamilton City Hall Thursday afternoon, hoping to encourage city officials to work out a deal with their union.

The paramedics, who say they’ve never been busier, have been without a contract for over two years.

The union representing the paramedics says its members are treated like third rate citizens, behind the city’s police officers, and fire fighters.

They’re looking to bridge the wage gap between Hamilton’s emergency workers and get on-par with neighbouring paramedic services.

Pam Brennan has been a paramedic for 28 years, but the job has changed drastically in just the last five.

READ MORE: Hamilton EMS rally for fair pay amid drawn-out contract talks

“The love to help others, to get out in the community and help others who were in need,” said Brennan. “Oh there’s a big difference, we’ve seen an uptick in call volume, we’ve seen an uptick on overdoses. We’ve just seen harsher times here in the city — we’re stretched really thin.”

“Since the pandemic, we’ve noticed people relying on 911 services for more than medical emergencies,” said Tonya Keane, a paramedic. “People call us on their worst day, no matter what that entails.”

Keane has been a Hamilton paramedic for five years, and says some of her colleagues respond to several drug overdoses a day.

“Some stations see up to 5-10 overdoses every single day and it’s really, really difficult to see the community that we love and provide for in those situations — every day, all day,” said Keane.

These paramedics have been without a contract for more than two years and they say that with what they deal with on a daily basis, it’s hard not to be insulted by that.

“It makes us want to leave, like most of my colleagues, especially the people that have been here five years or less, we want to leave because why would we put ourselves through the emotional or the mental and physical trauma that we put ourselves through every single day, when we can do that in a neighbouring community for a fair compensation?,” said Keane.

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“Right now, as of April 1, we’re approximately $20,000 a year behind comparable services in Peel, York, and Kitchener-Waterloo, and just last week Halton negotiated a consensual agreement as well,” said OPSEU Local 256 President Mario Posteraro.

Local paramedics rallied outside city hall Thursday afternoon.

While Hamilton paramedic service officials met with city council, part of their presentation showed that the number of calls jumped more than 5 per cent last year — up to over 112,000 calls.

“Hamilton is one of the busiest EMS services in the province,” said Posteraro. “Our paramedics punch above their weight everyday, work at a blistering pace. Obviously the types of calls, the change in the calls, the effects on mental health just warrant a fair wage. We’re looking for equal, we’re not looking for more.”

Despite the ongoing drug crisis, the number one reason for ambulance response was due to a fall and roughly 45 per cent of patients seen by paramedics were over the age of 65.

READ MORE: Local paramedics among five awarded with Ontario Medal for Paramedic Bravery