Silas: Health care is more than buildings and beds – it’s heath care workers.
November 4, 2025 (Ottawa, ON) – The Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU) is encouraged by capital funding for health infrastructure and supports for internationally educated nurses promised in Budget 2025. While Canada’s nurses support these efforts, the budget ignored the urgent need for nurse retention and recruitment and did not offer any new funding for pharmacare agreements.
“I congratulate the federal government for supporting provinces and territories with this much-needed capital funding for health infrastructure. But health care is more than buildings and beds – it’s health care workers. What’s missing from today’s budget is an investment into our nurses who have been shouldering the weight of overcapacity health care systems for far too long,” explained CFNU President Linda Silas. “Federal, provincial and territorial governments need to commit to funding proven retention and recruitment initiatives from supporting nursing students to nurse-patient ratios to lead Canada out of this health staffing crisis.”
The announcement of a Foreign Credential Recognition Action Fund is a welcome step towards recruitment and bolstering pathways for internationally educated nurses to practice in Canada.
While Silas applauded the federal government for introducing a tax credit for Personal Support Workers, she expressed disappointment that such a tax credit was not introduced for nurses and all health care workers.
Canada’s nurses pushed for the budget to include tax benefits for nurses, adequate funding to implement pharmacare, investments into proven solutions to retain nurses, financial support for nursing students, and standardizing the registration process for internationally educated nurses across the country.
“Healthy communities need strong public health care infrastructure, including universal pharmacare, dental care and child care. As Canadians continue to face an affordability crisis impacting their access to housing, food, medications and more, nurses know the importance of protecting public services for the health of communities across the country,” Silas said. “Canada’s nurses will continue to press governments to work with us on lasting solutions to strengthen public health care for all.”
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The CFNU is Canada’s largest nurses’ organization, representing 250,000 frontline unionized nurses and nursing students in every sector of health care – from home care and LTC to community and acute care – and advocating on key priorities to strengthen public health care across the country.
For more information, please contact Adella Khan, media@nursesunions.ca, 613‑807‑2942.