SENT TO ALL LOCAL CANDIDATES IN THE 2022 PROVINCIAL ELECTION:
Dear Candidate,
Your decision to seek office in the June provincial election is to be commended. It indicates you are committed to your electoral district and the City of Ottawa. Public service is a noble calling and I wish you the best of luck on election day.
As the President of the Ottawa Professional Firefighters' Association (OPFFA), I would like to ask you a few questions on issues of importance to Ottawa's professional firefighters. Answering these questions will not take long and I encourage you to do so. This questionnaire is being sent to candidates from all political parties in each Ottawa area electoral district. I plan to post the results on our government relations website on Thursday May 26, 2022. Responses from all candidates and parties will be posted – unedited and without evaluation or commentary – at www.ottawafirefightersgr.ca.
I would appreciate it greatly if you would return the completed questionnaire to our office (info@ottawafirefighters.org) by Wednesday May 25, 2022. If a reply has not been received by that date, we will simply indicate that we did not receive a reply from you. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Doug McLennan
President
Community & Firefighter Safety
1. Community and firefighter safety are key priorities for our Association. What can we expect from your party with regards to programs and initiatives that improve safety in these areas?
Presumptive Cancer
2. Ontario's presumptive cancer coverage for firefighters recognizes 17 cancers; however, it lags that of Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and the Yukon which recognize 19 cancers. Does your party commit to expanding Ontario’s presumptive coverage for firefighters to include thyroid and pancreatic cancer?
Simultaneous Notification
3. Automated links between Provincial Central Ambulance Communication Centres (CACC) and Municipal Fire Dispatch Centres allow for real-time bi-directional sharing of information, remove human delays, and automatically notify the second agency of life-threatening medical emergencies. This system of simultaneous notification is in place in several early adopter sites (Barrie, Guelph, Kitchener/Cambridge, Mississauga, and Brampton) and has been shown to improve response times. Unfortunately, automated links are not currently in place between the Ottawa CACC and Ottawa Fire Service (OFS) Dispatch. Is your party committed to implementing simultaneous notification across the province, including the City of Ottawa?
Free & Fair Collective Bargaining
4. The right of workers to bargain collectively is protected as an exercise of freedom of association under s. 2(d) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Free and fair collective bargaining is vital to ensuring employers and trade unions can establish fair wages and working conditions. Legislation that mandates a particular compensation outcome is unfair and interferes with the collective bargaining process. Will your party commit to repealing Bill 124 and to not introducing (nor voting in favour of) similar wage constraint legislation?
Having an Open Door
5. Meeting with elected officials is important to our Association because it gives us an opportunity to brief decision makers on issues that are important to professional firefighters as well as our community. If elected, will you schedule time to meet with our Association on a regular basis?
