AHS facing class-action lawsuit alleging workplace standards violations since 2013
Alberta Health Services is being sued by a group of staff that claim the agency violated provincial employment standards for nearly a decade.
Clinical assistants (CAs) and clinical surgical assistants (CSAs) in the province say AHS has been overworking and underpaying them since 2013.
Clinical assistants, as defined by AHS, work with physicians to provide "acute care coverage" in a variety of medical settings. For CSA's, this includes surgical assistance and pre- and post-operative care.
Kahane Law Office has filed a class action lawsuit against AHS on behalf of hundreds of those workers.
The group is seeking $125 million in damages, claiming AHS violated the Employee Standards Code regarding overtime payments, rest periods and 12-hour work shift lengths.
"Since joining Alberta Health Services in 2017, I’ve routinely worked shifts lasting up to 24 hours, including during weekends and holidays," said Mena Salamh, a plaintiff in the suit. "What we are seeking is proper compensation for the time we have already worked."
The lawsuit claims AHS also failed to provide legislated breaks and violated overtime pay rules.
According to the suit, AHS told CAs and SCAs between 2013 and 2022 that they were exempt from receiving overtime pay.
When that decision was reversed in 2022, Kahane Law said the group was offered a retroactive lump-sum overtime payment. However that payment only went back four months and included a cap on hours.
"As the largest employer in Alberta, Alberta Health Services must know they continue to be in contravention of the law by denying these hard-working medical professionals fair pay and a safe working environment," said Ariel Breitman, lead counsel for the plaintiffs.
An amended statement of claim was filed on April 26. As of Wednesday, there were around 228 active class members.
CTV News Edmonton has reached out to AHS.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trump's Madison Square Garden event features crude and racist insults
Donald Trump took the stage Sunday night at New York’s Madison Square Garden to deliver his campaign's closing argument with the election nine days away after several of his allies used crude and racist insults toward U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris and other critics of the former president.
B.C. election results: Mail-in ballots heavily favour NDP, only absentee ballots left to count
The majority of mail-in ballots tallied this weekend for the final count in B.C.’s nail-bitingly close 2024 provincial election went to the NDP, increasing the party’s chances of clinching a third term.
Here's when you need to change your clock back
Millions of Canadians will notice their clocks turn back by one hour on Nov. 3, marking the end of daylight saving time this year.
New polls show Sask. NDP leading over Sask. Party ahead of election day
A pair of new pre-election polls indicate that the Saskatchewan NDP has a slight lead ahead of election day.
17-year-old charged for driving 188 km/h on Hwy. 417 in Ottawa
A 17-year-old Ottawa driver was caught speeding nearly 90 km/h over the speed limit on Highway 417.
Hollywood star Victor Garber gets emotional after surprise meeting with his former teacher in London, Ont.
Victor Garber got teary-eyed when he walked into a brunch in his honour Sunday in London, Ont.
Another bumpy week ahead as Trudeau faces deadlines from Liberal MPs, Bloc
Another week, another raft of imminent challenges to Justin Trudeau's leadership of both the country and the Liberal Party.
He lost a finger and survived a kidnapping. Then, this climber took on a 9,000-foot 'death-trap'
With jaw-dropping big wall ascents and a life packed with adrenaline and adventure, climber Tommy Caldwell has had a career worthy of – and captured by – a feature film.
How to make sure your used clothes go to the right place – and not to organized crime
Giving away used clothes for a second life feels like an act of charity – and it often is. But it’s become more complicated. A W5 investigation has discovered allegations that organized crime players are muscling in on charities to access their donation bins.