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COMMENTARY: How not to improve health care in P.E.I.

The purpose of this letter is to express our disappointment with Health P.E.I.’s decision to end the $1.07 incentive memorandum of agreement (MOA).

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The $1.07 incentive was a premium of $1.07 per hour paid to all UPSE health employees who committed to work full time hours over a four-week period. This agreement was negotiated as a one-year pilot project, starting on Feb. 24, 2025, to determine whether the incentive would increase full-time equivalent (FTE) hours and stabilize the workforce. The parties were then to decide, by mutual consent, whether to extend it.

Although the agreement was signed in February 2025, the employer did not begin paying the incentive until December 2025. For a program meant to encourage members to work more hours, this delay reduced its impact. Because the $1.07 MOA was not implemented until December 2025, it is hard to see how the employer could properly evaluate the pilot project. At a minimum, the MOA should have been extended by nine months to allow for a full year of proper review, as outlined in the agreement.

This raises concerns about good faith, and as we enter new negotiations, P.E.I. UPSE will be cautious about future pilot projects.

In March 2026, Health P.E.I. sent mixed messages about the program.........

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