New Brunswick recruiting Quebec nurses amid staff shortage

Already dealing with a lack of nurses, Quebec now has some increased competition.

Horizon Health Network, one of two health authorities in New Brunswick, is in Montreal recruiting.

For those who work in Quebec’s health-care network, it is hardly a surprise.

"Quebec nurses are often really well-equipped to go to a province like New Brunswick because they speak French and English," said Natalie Stake-Doucet, president of the Quebec Nurses Association.

"So they have a good profile in terms of recruitment."

No one from Horizon Health was available to comment on Wednesday, but an online job offer shows the salary for a nurse in New Brunswick ranges between $37 and $45 an hour.

“Quebec is where nurses start with the lowest salary,” Stake-Doucet said. “Nurses here start between $25.80 and $27 an hour.”

Quebec is in need of nurses, and Dr. Paul Saba said this latest move by New Brunswick will send a strong signal.

"This should be a warning call to the administrators, to the government; let’s be proactive, let’s be more positive," Saba said.

Many in the health-care network say Quebec would have nothing to worry about if working conditions were improved.

"What we really have is a retention problem," Stake-Doucet said.

"We have more nurses than we’ve ever had, but we have extreme difficulty keeping them in the health-care system because of low pay and absolutely horrendous working conditions."

The CSN union, which represents about 2,000 nurses, said other provinces are taking note of what’s going on in Quebec.

In a statement to CTV News, Quebec Health Minister Christian Dube said all provinces are facing the same shortage and have an interest in recruiting internationally.

Quebec said it’s working to make the public sector an employer of choice for nurses.