Case Manager’s letter to Deputy Minister Ledwell – Union of Veterans’ Affairs Employees

We have been working for months together to try and push back against the impact of the new Rehab contract within the department and in the media and with politicians. We will continue that work. But now we need your full active support as Case Managers.

Attached is a letter that we are asking you to sign. We are asking all Case Managers to sign this letter to show your support for your jobs, your co-workers, and the Veterans and their families that you have the honour to support and serve. This will be a powerful message that we can send together to not just the Deputy Minister but to the public and the politicians.

We will compile all the signed letters we receive and send them in one package to the Deputy Minister.

We hope you will join us. Together we will win and affect the changes needed for Veterans and Case Managers.

Name

First Last

Phone

Address

Street Address City Province Postal Code

Dear Deputy Minister Ledwell,

I am a Case Manager, and I am writing to you to express our deep concerns about the new Rehabilitation contract. This contract has been problematic from the beginning. We have received inadequate training and little information in response to our many requests.

We believe that this contract needs to be placed on indefinite hold until all the problems and issues that we have identified have been resolved. If they cannot be resolved, then the contract should be terminated.

We are writing this letter on behalf of the Veterans who we have the honour to serve. Many of them are depressed and angry and frustrated by the new contractor and by service providers who do not understand Veterans and their specific needs.

There are significant delays in Veterans getting access to services, vocational assessments, and most concerning timely completion of assessments. Veterans who are already working with Vocational services prior to the change have experienced delays in processing reports in order to further support their needs. Veterans are being asked to undergo extensive interviews and assessments, some of which last 3 hours or more. Some are giving up on their rehabilitation plans because they simply cannot withstand these ordeals.

We do not believe that the new contractor has the training or expertise or cultural awareness to deliver this contract in a timely, professional, and caring fashion. There are also gaps in services and service providers in several regions and many suppliers are reluctant to register with the new contractor. For these and other reasons that have already been brought to your attention, we urge you to place this process on hold and return the rehabilitation case management to your Case Managers.

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