Canadian Hearing Society strike 'devastating' for Sudburian who is deaf

A Sudbury, Ont. mother of two who has been deaf most of her life says the ongoing strike involving Canadian Hearing Society workers in Ontario has been "devastating."

• Ontario Canadian Hearing Society workers could be on the picket line
• Settle the strike, Canadian Hearing Society users say

Johanne Venne is able to hear voices but not clearly. She said she sometimes can't tell, just by listening, whether a man or a woman is speaking. What she can do exceptionally well and in both of Canada's official languages is lip-read.

Even so, she said she normally uses an interpreter provided by the hearing society several times a week for things like work meetings and medical appointments. She said she also would have used one this week to help make her father's funeral arrangements.

Just this week it's hellish for me- Johanne Venne

"They were all making decisions and I had no idea what was being decided and I was right there in the room," she told CBC's northern Ontario afternoon show, Up North.

"If CHS wasn't on strike right now, my interpreter would be withme, supporting me through all this," she continued.

"Just this week it's hellish for me ... it's as if everything went way over my head."

Solely relying on lip-reading takes a lot of effort, she added.

"I would ask for interpreting services at least twice, three times a week," Venne said. "They're not being provided. And I have to fend for myself. I have to lip read, and I have to work harder to communicate with people around me."

Interpreting services, along with a number of others, currently aren't being provided. About 70 CHS workers are employed in northern Ontario.

Support for workers

Even though it's been a difficult time, Venne said she supports the employees as they walk the picket lines.

The workers, represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees, say they have been without a contract for four years and are seeking a wage increase and protection of health benefits and sick leave.

The Canadian Hearing Society has countered by saying that it has made a generous offer, and that if it met demands from the union, the society may need to lay off 40 percent of its staff.

There are no negotiations happening between the two sides.

"They are such a devoted group of people," Venne said of the employees. "They are with us, they work with us for ... our right to accessibility."

"So, yes, I'm supporting the workers."

Venne said she understands the situation and knows that employees sometimes have to take job action. She said that the work stoppage going on much longer will keep making her life and the lives of others who can't hear very difficult.

"I really hope that they would meet at the negotiating table and start negotiating soon," she said.

"I don't even want to think about it."