Yvette Coffey, president of the Registered Nurses' Union of Newfoundland and Labrador, says more has to be done to ensure nurses from this province aren't lured away with outside job offers. (Jonny Hodder/CBC)

The head of the nurses' union in Newfoundland and Labrador is sounding the alarm after learning only three nursing graduates out of a class of 121 received job offers from the Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services -- and that travel nurses might still be getting preferred contracts.

Yvette Coffey, president of the Registered Nurses' Union of Newfoundland and Labrador, said a union vice-president heard an earful when she visited a classroom last week.

One student from central Newfoundland said she had finished her clinical placement in the region and wanted to return, but a manager told her they don't post job vacancies and prefer to hire private agency nurses.

"I was that mad when I heard that," Coffey said. "I was like, 'this can't be real.'"

Then, she said, she received an email from another student also from central Newfoundland who wanted to work there but couldn't find information on applying for a job there.

"This has been going on for months. No response to her inquiries," said Coffey.

Coffey said the highest use of agency nurses in the province is in central Newfoundland.

"So my question is, who's profiting? What's going on here that we're not going to hire our own graduates but we're going to continue to use private agency nurses out there?"

This comes at a time when there has been a push to fill the approximately 600 nursing vacancies across the province.

An access-to-information request showed more than 90 per cent of nursing graduates in 2024 did receive work offers after graduation and 45 per cent were for full-time permanent positions.

However, Coffey isn't optimistic that students graduating in 2025 will see similar offers.

She's warning that nurses about to enter the workforce could be scooped up by outside job offers, and students are worried as they get closer to graduation with no job offers.

"Their plan is to take positions here in Newfoundland and Labrador and stay here. This is where they live and this is where they want to stay," said Coffey. "But they are looking at all their opportunities because [the health authority] is so slow getting back to them."

Jobs for students

Debbie Molloy, vice-president of human resources for Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services (NLHS), spoke to reporters Tuesday and assured students that more job offers will be made in the coming months.

"If there's been some misunderstanding, I just want to be very clear that we do have a position available for every graduate in 2025. And we're excited about that," she said.

Those positions are throughout Newfoundland and Labrador and there are incentives -- like signing bonuses -- to encourage nurses to take those jobs.

"We've done 90 interviews to date and that's our focus right now is completing those interviews so that we can then do that matching process," said Molloy.

Debbie Molloy, vice-president of human resources for Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services, says there are nursing positions in N.L. for students who are graduating in the spring. (Mark Quinn/CBC)

She said the health authority is looking into the allegations of whether managers are forgoing posting job vacancies because they prefer to hire agency nurses.

"We've launched an investigation so that we can determine what exactly was said. And then there will be appropriate action that will be taken after that," said Molloy.

She said the health authority is committed to reducing the number of travel agency nurses and plans to reach pre-pandemic levels by 2026.

Health Minister John Hogan said he understands the anxiety students are feeling as they wonder where they are going to work after graduation.

"NLHS is ahead of schedule where it was last year in terms of offering and securing and finalizing positions throughout the province for these nurses," Hogan said.

"We are doing everything we can to have graduates from Newfoundland and Labrador work in Newfoundland and Labrador."

Discord in messages

Jordan Brown, NDP MHA for Labrador West, says there is a disconnect between students and the health authority over job availability.

"It's really concerning given that, you know, there's supposed to be this seamless transition between MUN and NLHS," he told reporters.

Brown said it's a problem that a class of more than 100 students only has three job offers and the province is still reliant on expensive travel nurses.

Barry Petten, PC MHA for Conception Bay South, responded to the situation more bluntly.

"I think all of us collectively, and people in the province, are scratching their heads. Like, you get two remotely different stories. So somewhere in between that lies the truth," he said.

He also said he blames the government for the situation.

"I can't get my head around this, quite frankly," Petten said. "It just befuddles my brain."

He also said whatever manager told a nursing student there was a preference for agency nurses should be "dealt with in the harshest manner."