LONDON, ON, December 5, 2025 – The Provincial President of the Ontario Nurses’ Association (ONA) and the ONA100 Bargaining Unit President are outraged at the announcement that London Health Sciences Centre that health-care staff who are not ONA members will lose unlimited mental health benefits in the new year.

“While an arbitrator recognized and ordered unlimited mental health benefits for Ontario’s front-line nurses and health-care professionals who are members of ONA, it is alarming and frankly, outrageous that this benefit is being taken away from hospital workers represented by other unions, and with so little notice,” says Provincial President Erin Ariss, RN.

“The approaching holiday season is often the most difficult time of the year for so many, and the prospect of losing mental health supports on January 1 is yet another slap in the face for so many who work under such harrowing conditions to provide care for Ontarians,” Ariss adds.

Lindsay Carnahan, RN, ONA100 Bargaining Unit President, says the announcement “will have serious consequences for staff wellbeing, morale and will result in potentially life-and-death consequences. The need for ongoing access to mental health care in Ontario – especially for those working in our understaffed and high-pressure hospital system – is real and it continues to grow. Cutting benefits to balance a budget in an underfunded system is short sighted and dangerous.”

ONA notes that a 2024 survey of nurses by the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions found that 68% say their workplace is regularly over capacity, 55% say their relationships with family and friends are negatively impacted due to the number of hours they work, half rate the stress they experience in their job as high or very high, 25% meet clinical thresholds for anxiety, depression, and burnout and more than one-quarter are considering leaving their current job or their profession.

“These statistics reflect a workforce pushed to the brink, even before factoring in the ongoing strain of understaffing and high patient demand,” says Ariss. “This government and health-care CEOs continue to show disrespect to those who care for Ontarians.”

Carnahan says that, “ONA members stand in solidarity with our coworkers represented by other unions and will continue to support them in any way that we can. We are committed to advocating for life-saving supports for every employee so they have access to the mental health care they need and deserve.”

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