Ontario Nurses’ Association Celebrates 50 Years of Advocacy

TORONTO, ON, October 19, 2022 – Beginning today, the union representing 68,000 registered nurses, nurse practitioners, registered practical nurses and health-care professionals will kick off a year-long countdown to its 50^th anniversary on October 19, 2023.

The Ontario Nurses’ Association (ONA), Canada’s largest nurses’ union, will celebrate its 50 years of advocacy with a series of provincial and local community events.

“Since 1973, ONA has focused its efforts with one end goal in mind: advocating for health-care professionals and the patients who rely on us for high-quality public care,” says ONA President Cathryn Hoy, RN. “Despite decades of challenges – and many triumphs along the way – we have never wavered in our commitment to those we care for. And when conditions of work are excellent for nurses and health-care professionals, patient care benefits.”

Nearly 50 years ago in Ontario, nurses and health-care professionals stood together and formed ONA, a union dedicated to fighting for a female-dominated sector characterized by poor working conditions and compensation. It is a proud, milestone event as ONA and its members recommit to advocating for public health care, and the workers who play an irreplaceable role in delivering care.

“In 2022, as we mark our 50^th anniversary, ONA’s struggle for fairness and equitable treatment for nurses and health-care professionals continues,” says Hoy. “Through ONA, we will continue the fight to keep nursing and health care united and strong.”

ONA is the union representing more than 68,000 registered nurses and health-care professionals, as well as 18,000 nursing student affiliates, providing care in hospitals, long-term care facilities, public health, the community, clinics and industry.

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