Alberta health-care workers' violence claims hit 10-year high: WCB

Alberta health-care workers filed 1,108 workplace violence claims with the Workers' Compensation Board (WCB) in 2025, the most in a decade, according to data obtained by CBC News, as unions press for stronger violence-prevention measures.

The 2025 total compares with 672 claims in 2016. CBC News reported that claims climbed annually from that year until the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, when they dipped slightly.

That dip ended in 2022. Every year since has produced at least 1,000 claims, according to CBC.

The 2025 figure is 436 claims higher than the 2016 total, an increase of about 65%.

The numbers are raw counts rather than rates. A provincial spokesperson told CBC News the health-care workforce has grown 36% since 2019, and no claim rate per worker was reported.

Unions say the counts understate the problem. "These WCB numbers are just the ones that are reported and are actually accepted claims," said Leanne Alfaro, president of the Health Sciences Association of Alberta.

Alberta health-care workplace violence claims by year, as CBC reported

Unions press for action

Alfaro and Sandra Azocar, president of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees, linked the rise to short staffing, long waits and more people turning to hospitals amid homelessness and mental health issues.

The Royal Alexandra Hospital in Edmonton began weapons screening in May, after an April stabbing in its emergency department. The University of Alberta Hospital followed in September.

Alfaro called for tougher rules. "Our legislation should be stronger to ensure [a safe workplace] occurs and that the employers abide by it," she said.

Alberta Health Services said in a Sept. 2 news release that monthly prohibited items identified and secured at the Royal Alexandra rose from an average of 120 to 140 to 359 after screening began.

Under Alberta's Occupational Health and Safety Act, violence is a workplace hazard that must be addressed in hazard assessments, according to Government of Alberta guidance. Employers must also have a violence and harassment prevention plan and investigate every incident.

In an April Canadian Occupational Safety report on Alberta nurses pressing the province for stronger protections, United Nurses of Alberta president Heather Smith said violence against nurses is "significantly underreported."

National groups have flagged the same risk. After a February 2025 attack in Halifax, three national health organizations warned of the dangers health professionals across Canada face from patient assaults. Last December, the Canadian Union of Public Employees said the province was ignoring fatality inquiry safety recommendations for care workers.