"Regardless of which way this legal claim goes, I think Alberta Health Services needs to take seriously these concerns that these workers have - that they're not receiving sufficient downtime," Hardcastle said. The handbook for non-union employees says shifts are not to exceed 15 hours. The statement of claim also alleges AHS failed to allow clinical assistants to take two 30-minute rest periods when they worked for more than 10 hours, that they were not paid shift premiums for working certain shifts and that they were regularly scheduled to work shifts beyond 12 hours and sometimes up to 24 hours. The statement of claim says the retroactive payment was only a partial payment. "It is rare that without some change in their understanding of the law, they would have just simply, as a gesture of goodwill, gone and paid people in a retroactive manner," Hardcastle said. Lorian Hardcastle, a University of Calgary law professor who specializes in health policy, said it's possible that AHS changed its interpretation of legislation or received a legal opinion that prompted the retroactive payment. The email said the workers would be paid retroactively for overtime worked since April 1, 2022, and that they would receive overtime payments going forward. The December 2022 email to the plaintiff and some class members said according to a different document, which the statement of claim says has not been provided to the employees, clinical assistants have not been eligible to receive regular overtime payments. The statement of claim says AHS told clinical assistants, verbally and in writing, that they are exempt from receiving overtime payments. The statement of claim says their terms and conditions of employment are outlined in a handbook, which states that "overtime will be paid for any time worked beyond regular hours of work." Jim McFadyen, a lawyer in Parlee McLaws' Edmonton office, said the lawsuit was discontinued.Ĭlinical assistants are not unionized in Alberta. Foreign-trained doctors accuse Alberta Health Services of discrimination.Albert, Alta., worked as a psychiatrist in Russia before immigrating to Canada in 2012. Their duties include conducting physical exams, writing orders, documenting patient histories and developing treatment plans with supervising doctors. Base salaries, according to an AHS website about the jobs, range from about $63,000 to $155,000. Foreign-trained doctorsĬlinical assistants and clinical surgical assistants are foreign-trained doctors who work under doctors' supervision in Alberta. None of the allegations have been proven in court. "The defendant maintained that the plaintiff and active class members were not eligible for overtime despite making a partial retroactive payment and paying partial overtime payments to the plaintiff and active class members thereafter," the statement of claim says. The email said they would receive a retroactive payment for overtime they had previously worked and would continue to receive overtime payments.
The statement of claim says the plaintiff and class members discovered they had not been paid the overtime and shift premiums to which they were entitled when they received an email from AHS on Dec.
Class action lawsuits plus#
The proposed class action seeks $10 million in general damages, $85 million in special damages and $10 million in punitive damages, plus costs and interest. On Wednesday he told CBC News a statement of defence had not been filed. Robert Erickson, the lawyer for representative plaintiff Julia Ionina said he and his client are not prepared to comment at this time.ĪHS spokesperson James Wood said AHS cannot comment as the case is before the courts.
The claim alleges AHS breached and continues to breach terms of employment contracts and its duty of care to the representative plaintiff and class members. 12 alleges the health authority has failed to pay overtime and provide rest periods to clinical assistants since 2016. A proposed class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of clinical assistants and clinical surgical assistants has been launched against Alberta Health Services.Ī statement of claim filed in Calgary Court of King's Bench on Aug.
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