Dynacare employees working in Winnipeg and Brandon are on the brink of a strike due to heavy workloads and stagnant salaries, as confirmed by their union. The Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals stated in a news release on Thursday that laboratory technicians and technologists voted overwhelmingly in favor of strike action, with 87% of the nearly 350 Dynacare workers participating in the vote.
Since the expiration of their previous contract on April 1, these employees have been without a new agreement. They are stationed at Dynacare’s 22 lab and health services facilities in and around Winnipeg and Brandon, including the main lab on King Edward Street in Winnipeg. According to the union’s announcement, the workers collectively conducted more than 15 million lab tests during the 2024-25 fiscal year.
Jason Linklater, the president of MAHCP, highlighted that while the workload of these workers has increased, their pay has remained stagnant. He pointed out that the current wages for Dynacare lab professionals lag behind Shared Health employees by 20 to 50% for similar specialized roles, varying based on job classification and tenure.
The union emphasized that negotiations for a new collective agreement between Dynacare and MAHCP commenced in February after the previous agreement expired on March 31. Despite entering mediation in July, the parties have not reached a tentative agreement. No further bargaining or mediation dates have been scheduled at this time.
Linklater mentioned that the union aims to avoid disrupting lab services in the province and has not set a strike deadline yet. However, if bargaining dates are not arranged promptly, strike notice may be issued to push Dynacare back to the negotiating table. The union also pointed out that Dynacare currently holds a monopoly on non-hospital testing in Manitoba, following its acquisition of Unicity Labs in 2017. Additionally, the union highlighted that Dynacare’s parent company, Labcorp, has seen a significant increase in profits over the past two years, soaring from $418 million in 2023 to $876 million in 2025.
