Red Deer retirement workers file to unionize

Earlier this week, the Alberta Labour Relations Board released their latest new applications report. In it was an application for union certification.

Local 417 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees filed the application on 11 July 2024 for about 90 workers in the Red Deer area.

These workers are employed at Inglewood, a retirement home offering independent living, assisted living, and short-term care options.

Inglewood is owned by HCN–Revera, a joint venture created last year between the Toronto-based Revera Inc. and the US-based Health Care REIT, Inc.

Revera is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Public Sector Pension Invest Board, a federal Crown corporation. Health Care REIT is a real estate investment trust.

Prior to the joint venture, Revera managed over 80 senior residences throughout Ontario and all 4 provinces in Western Canada. According to a Madeline Smith of the CBC, Revera wanted to get out of the care management industry so they could focus on real estate management industry.

In the process, many of the properties owned by HCN–Revera joint venture in British Columbia and Alberta are now being managed by Optima Living, which is based out of Vancouver. That includes the Inglewood facility in Red Deer.

The HCN–Revera joint venture still owns Inglewood under the registered name of HCN-Revera Lessee (Inglewood) GP Inc.

The application doesn’t specify that Local 417 is unionizing only health care workers. In fact, it says they plan to represent “all employees” at the Inglewood facility.

The ALRB has scheduled a hearing for this application, during which time, representatives from the employer will have a chance to argue why they think the workers shouldn’t be able to unionize with Local 417.

If the ALRB approves the application, they will organize a certification vote, and the workers will be able to choose whether to unionize.

Should a majority of the workers vote in favour of unionizing, their next step will be to organize a bargaining committee to begin negotiating for a new contract.

If Local 417 succeeds in this unionization drive, it will be the first retirement community where they represent workers. Currently, they on representing workers employed by municipal governments, as well as a couple of non-profit organizations.

Because the ALRB doesn’t archive their new application reports, I have included a copy of this one below.

Update (9 January 2025): The ALRB issued a certificate for these workers today, officially making this location an unionized workplace.