To Continuing Care Assistants in Nova Scotia,

Last night, my colleagues Barbara Adams, Minister of Seniors and Long-Term Care, and Michelle Thompson,
Minister of Health and Wellness, joined me – and many of you – on a virtual call. I want to thank everyone
who attended that meeting, especially those who spoke so candidly about their own experiences.
You told us about the many challenges you face on a daily basis – challenges that have made your jobs very
hard. You told us that, as a group, CCAs have felt forgotten, undervalued and less of a priority than other
healthcare workers. You told us about the impact of being chronically short-staffed. You told us you aren’t
paid nearly enough for the work you do. You also told us how much you care about the people you serve.
And you told us deeply personal stories about your work and what you love about it — but also the impact it
has had on your lives, your families and even your personal health.

I said this last night and I will say it again: CCAs are a highly valued and critically important part of our
healthcare system. But I want to do more than say it. I want to show you. That’s why, effective tomorrow,
wages will increase by approximately 23 per cent for every continuing care assistant in the province’s publicly
funded system. For most full-time CCAs, that means an annual increase of almost $9,000. The new salaries
will range from $44,660 for entry level positions to $48,419 for those at the top of scale.

This is not a silver-bullet solution for every issue CCAs face in our province. We have a lot more to do to fix
the system. But it’s a start – one that I hope demonstrates how much we value your work and how committed
we are to turning talk into action.

You can find more information about today’s announcement in the news release:
https://novascotia.ca/news/rel....

Employers and unions will be working together on
the rollout of this wage increase. You can expect to hear from them directly with more details as soon as they
are available.

My sincerest thanks,
Honourable Tim Houston, M.L.A.