CAMBRIDGE, ON, March 11, 2026 – More than 200 nurses and health-care professionals held an early-morning picket today outside Southbridge Canada’s corporate headquarters in Cambridge, marking the start of provincial bargaining between the Ontario Nurses’ Association (ONA) and more than 190 for-profit nursing homes across Ontario.
“We are here to push back against corporate greed and unfair wages in Ontario’s for-profit nursing homes,” said ONA Provincial President Erin Ariss, RN. “Corporations like Southbridge are generating record profits while staff who care for vulnerable residents are left to cope with impossible working conditions. Residents are not receiving the quality of care they deserve because there are fewer staff, less resources and they need more complex care. It’s unacceptable, and we are taking action to change it.”
Ariss said front-line staff are united and clear about their priorities: quality care must be the top priority, full stop. ONA is entering negotiations next month and members have told us that their top priorities are staff-to-resident ratios and wage parity with hospital nurses. Front-line staff know that achieving these goals will help retain and recruit staff and improve the quality of care residents receive.
“Our provincial government must hold these corporations accountable. For-profit operators understaff and underpay workers to maximize returns for shareholders, putting profits ahead of the care these operators are entrusted to provide. We are sending a clear message: the era of corporate greed overriding the needs of our most vulnerable residents must end, and we are prepared to fight to make that happen.”
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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