The number of retired nurses who were rehired to work in the public health-care system has skyrocketed in the last decade, with the most notable jump happening part way through the pandemic.

CBC News obtained the data through access-to-information from Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services on the number of retirees in the system and the total number of days worked.

Last fiscal year, 253 retired nurses worked an average of 15,105.15 days. That’s a vast increase from the six retired nurses who worked a combined 158 days during the 2014-15 fiscal year.

The numbers show the health-care sector relied most heavily on retirees in the years after the pandemic began.

“The data shows that our health-care system continues to rely heavily on retired nurses to help keep services running, and that tells us the underlying recruitment and retention problems are still not resolved,” said Yvette Coffey, president of the Registered Nurses’ Union Newfoundland & Labrador, in an emailed statement.

In an email, the union said as of January there were 343 vacant registered nurse and nurse practitioner positions across the province.

In her statement, Coffey said the union is supportive of retired nurses who wish to return to the field.

However, Coffey said relying on retired nurses, casuals and other temporary staffing measures is not a long-term solution.

“These measures may help manage the pressure in the moment, but they do not fix the systemic issues affecting recruitment and retention,” Coffey said.

Coffey said the provincial government has “started to take some positive steps to address underlying concerns,” but that work must continue to stabilize the workforce.

NLHS said no one was available for an interview by publishing time.

More than 1,300 new nurses were hired between early 2023 and early 2025, a provincial government health-care recruitment website notes.

It’s not just the health-care sector that’s relying on retirees.

CBC News reported in January that the number of retired teachers working as substitutes in Newfoundland and Labrador schools soared in the last decade.

Last year, some 592 retirees subbed a total of 31,791 days — a massive increase compared to 10 years ago, when just 61 retired teachers worked 1,104 days during the 2015-16 school year.

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