Dynacare employees at laboratories in Winnipeg and Brandon are gearing up for a potential strike due to heavy workloads and stagnant wages, as reported by their union. The Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals announced that 99.7% of laboratory technicians and technologists voted in favor of strike action this week, with 87% of the approximately 350 Dynacare workers participating in the vote.
Since the expiration of their previous contract on April 1, the workers have been without a new agreement. These employees 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. In the fiscal year 2024-25, they collectively conducted more than 15 million lab tests.
According to Jason Linklater, the president of MAHCP, the workers have experienced an increase in workload but have not seen a corresponding rise in pay. Current wages for lab professionals at Dynacare lag behind those of Shared Health employees performing similar specialized tasks by 20 to 50%. The wage discrepancy varies based on job classification and years of service.
Linklater highlighted that the recent vote results indicate that the lab workers are “unified and angry” about the situation. He emphasized that recruitment and retention become challenging when wages are significantly lower than those in the public system and when benefits are also less competitive. Negotiations for a new collective agreement began in February after the previous agreement expired on March 31. However, despite entering mediation in July, the parties have not reached a tentative agreement.
The union has not scheduled further bargaining or mediation sessions, and strike notice has not yet been issued. Linklater mentioned that the union aims to avoid disrupting lab services in the province but will consider issuing a strike notice if bargaining dates are not arranged promptly. The union expressed concerns about Dynacare’s dominance in non-hospital testing in Manitoba, following its acquisition of competitor Unicity Labs in 2017, making it the sole private outpatient provider for laboratory services in the province.
Dynacare, a subsidiary of Labcorp, has seen a significant increase in profits over the past two years, with earnings surging from $418 million in 2023 to $876 million in 2025, according to the union.