AUPE holds rallies on July 27 and 28

Posted on July 23, 2026 by admin

By Heather Cameron
Westwind Weekly News

Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) Local 42, chapter 11, which is the union connected to Good Samaritan Society Raymond and Magrath, will be holding two information rallies in southern Alberta this month.

Andrew Hanon, Manager of Communications for AUPE, stated that one rally will be held on July 27  from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. at Garden Vista in Magrath. 

The other rally, Hanon stated, will be held on July 28, 2026, from 2:20 to 3:30 p.m. at Prairie Ridge Good Sams. 

Both rallies, Hanon continued, will take place on the public sidewalk in front of each facility and all AUPE members invited to attend during non-working time, and media is also invited to observe the event.

“Members at Garden Vista are in negotiations for a new collective agreement,” said Hanon. “We are rallying to show that we are united in fighting for the improved wages and working conditions we deserve.”

Danna Harker, who is also involved with the union and currently works as an LPN at Garden Vista, personally organized the rallies. Harker says that she has been an AUPE member since 2012 and has worked at facilities in Cardston, Magrath, and Raymond since then in various capacities, including casual shifts, union secretary, Occupational Health and Safety rep, and member of the EMAC Committee and truly cares about fairness. Harker says she organized the rallies to help the union in their fight to have their contracts ratified because in her opinion, Good Samaritan Society is not bargaining in good faith and are actively delaying talks about wages and benefits.

“I’m passionate about getting a fair deal and the people we serve,” said Harker. “The more noise we make the better chance we will be heard.”

Harker said that she feels like a big barrier to retention of staff is not having an up-to-date contract, and the desire is that AUPE ratify their contract sooner rather than, as staff is being lost to Albera Health Services, who currently have ratified contracts. 

Other issues, Harker went on to say, include changes to the payroll system that have caused issues with employee pay, frequent use of agency staff that get paid more and are accommodated more than regular staff, vacancies that have been left unfilled due to changes by head office, difficulties in locating job postings, and the chaos by which applications are processed- with all applications going through Edmonton and not directly to site managers. 

Garden Vista, Harker explained, also has high care needs, but lacks sufficient staff, support, or equipment to support their staff and residents.

“The rallies are one of the few ways we as members are able to make our employer realize how we feel and hear our message,” said Harker. 

Hanon added that this rallying isn’t limited to southern Alberta, and that AUPE continuing care workers across the province are rallying to show their employers that the union is ready to fight however they need to for better working conditions and better care conditions to win the agreement they deserve to have.

AUPE, Hanon continued, is Alberta’s largest provincial government workers union with more than 100,000 members and has been around since 1976 with its predecessor, the Civil Service Association of Alberta being founded in 1919. 

Hanon says that AUPE has grown over the years to become the province’s largest and most diverse union, with members working in government, health care, education, boards and agencies, municipalities, and private companies and the fight for better conditions is going to result in future rallies. 

More information about future rallies, Hanon said, can be found at: https://www.aupe.org/events.

“We know that care delayed is care denied,” said Hanon. “AUPE members are fighting for better continuing care. We deserve better, and seniors deserve better.”