Dear members,
This year was one for the books. In many ways, 2025 was defined by our fight. The year kicked off with a federal election, and we were all in: for public health care, for pharmacare, for patients – and for you, the nurses and health care workers we all rely on.
When health care was left off the agenda for the leaders’ debate, together we sent hundreds of letters demanding better – and we won. Ultimately, health care got the airtime it needed as one of the country’s top voter issues.
Through letters, radio ads, billboards, social media and so much more, we made sure that public health care and health care workers were on the minds of voters and candidates alike.
We doubled down on our fight for equity. We have the power to influence change, and we are committed to using that power to stand up for safety and inclusion. The CFNU is proud to support organizations doing the hard work of protecting queer and trans rights, advancing health care for all, battling privatization, and supporting health care workers in conflict zones around the world.
After many months of learning and planning, the CFNU apologised to First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples for the harms Indigenous Peoples have faced historically and currently face in health care. CFNU’s work to further reconciliation has been guided by our Indigenous Nurse Advisory Committee, who have provided direction and advice on how to do this work in a good way, and I am deeply grateful for their contributions. We are proud to have published a new report, Beyond Equity, to help advance truth and reconciliation within the nursing and broader health care community in Canada.
We know, politicians don’t see the light, they feel the heat. So we make sure they feel the heat. We took our fight for respect to premiers at the Council of the Federation meetings, where we called on premiers to treat nursing as the safety-critical workforce it is. One where there should always be enough nurses on duty to safely care for patients. We’re keeping up the fight for nurse-patient ratios, a lifesaving solution to overcapacity and understaffed health care workplaces.
Your National Executive Board and I continue the fight. We don’t wait for governments and employers to act, we lead the way. There have already been decades of research that show how mandatory nurse-patient ratios can solve staffing shortages, protect patient safety, improve workplaces and keep nurses in the profession. That’s why your National Executive Board has decided to make ratios a top priority in 2026. Together, we’re launching a national council to implement nurse-patient ratios and leading the way for the change we need across Canada.
We won’t be ignored – not about patient safety nor about our own safety. We won’t stay silent on the violence that has become a constant threat for nurses and health care professionals while they’re at work. We worked across our membership to collect data that shows how pervasive violence is and just how little consequences there are for it. Together, your nurses unions have taken these findings and solutions to our government leaders, and frankly, we won’t stop fighting until we know each and every health care professional is safe at work.
Yet again, we are forced to launch a campaign to demand that governments act on our concerns about unsafe staffing, privatization and violence. Inspired by the Manitoba Nurses Union’s campaign Same Shift Different Day, the CFNU has launched a national campaign Same Shift Different Province that highlights the exhaustion of dealing with the same shit day in and day out – something I know nurses across our country can relate to.
What we’re really doing is letting our elected leaders know that nurses will not be divided by territory, province or work site. Pharmacare is not just for patients in select regions. Retention initiatives can’t just be monetary bonuses based on where you live. We stand united, and it’s time to change our systems for the better for all.
Your voice is critical to this fight. We will keep working together to find ways to bring your voice to the forefront and make sure it’s heard. This is your life, your voice and your fight.
I know it can be tiring to keep the fight up. I encourage you to take a break, connect with your loved ones and find downtime that is just for you. Know that every day you feel exhausted or even defeated, you have an entire country of nurses standing behind you. And we’re a fierce bunch. Together, we’ll continue the fight. And together, we’ll win.
Thank you, merci and miigwetch to each and every one of you, and a special merci to everyone working through the holiday season to keep our communities safe and healthy.
In unwavering solidarity,
Linda Silas, CFNU President
