Subject: Healthcare Strife Across The U.S: LRI INK

October 06, 2022

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Healthcare Strife Across The U.S.

by Kimberly Ricci

The media would love to make "Striketober" happen in all industries when, really, the press tends to focus on a few high-profile events to paint a picture. Yet if we're talking about the healthcare industry (and we are), then we’re dealing with a different beast than the rest of the labor world. When it comes to hospitals and mental health services, a deluge of 2022 strikes is not only reality but remains a looming threat, one that persists with higher stakes (one cannot power down an ER or other essential services) than when workers in the retail or food service industries head to the picket lines.

 

That makes for an interesting comparison: a Boston-focused publication recently did some leg work to find out how striking Starbucks workers fared after two months. Our own Phil Wilson contributed analysis amid the report's findings, which ultimately revealed how 60+ days of round-the-clock striking led to little benefit for the workers. They took home 70% of their usual pay rate via a local labor council and exited strike mode with no negotiations or changes to their working conditions. Will this outcome lead to fewer Starbucks or grocery-store strikes going forward? Only time will tell.

 

However, strikes in the healthcare field can yield more tangible results, so one can expect unions to take further advantage of workers’ frustrations in this industry. Becker’s Hospital Review rounded up 14 significant strikes that happened (and some are still in process) this year. Nearly every incident has plenty to do with staffing shortages while healthcare workloads stay the same or grow even greater. The industry still sits in a tough spot, so let’s round up the healthcare strife:


  • Kaiser’s long-term woes show no sign of slowing down. As we previously discussed, one of the U.S.’ largest healthcare employers continues to grapple with mental healthcare worker strikes in California and (to a lesser degree) Hawaii. California regulators continue to investigate patient complaints about appointment unavailability, and the state’s Kaiser strike now enters the seventh week. Talks broke down with Kaiser and National Union of Health Care Workers continuing to clash on issues of scheduling, staffing, and pay.

  • Minnesota’s healthcare troubles continue to boil over. 400 mental health workers (who joined SEIU in late 2021) threatened a three-day strike that M Health Fairview University of Minnesota Medical Center ducked at the last hour when workers called off the strike. The facility and the union have since reached a tentative contract. However, mental health workers at Allina Health's Abbott Northwestern Hospital went on strike as planned this week. Both developments follow a historic strike by 15,000 members of the Minnesota Nurses Association, who walked off the job for three days in mid-September before the hospital and union agreed to head back to the bargaining table.

  • In Fresno, California, nurses went on a one-day strike at Sunnyside Convalescent Hospital. They vowed to strike indefinitely unless the facility’s owner agrees to address workers’ concerns on staffing and funding issues.

  • University of Michigan Health agreed to a $273 million, four-year contract with the nurses represented by the University of Michigan Professional Nurse Council. Those nurses walked away with bonuses and significant raises, results that can be attributed to the tight labor market for healthcare workers.

  • In Seattle, Washington, a similar situation at Swedish Health Services led to raises for 7,000+ workers represented by the SEIU.

  • In Texas, Ascension Seton Medical Center nurses became the state’s biggest private-sector healthcare facility to unionize while citing safety and staffing shortages as their main concerns. No strike news surfaced there (yet).


Not every healthcare workplace happens to be in the same boat. Near Sacramento, nurses at the Pine Creek Care Center ousted the Teamsters in a decertification vote. This news comes after the nurses declared that they were “forced” to accept the Teamsters as their representatives and to pay dues to maintain their employment. Not too far away in Monterey, Cypress Ridge Care Center nurses also recently voted to boot the SEIU after it failed to deliver upon promised results.


Links

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Union Bailout

 

Letter To The NLRB Inspector General Regarding Allegations Of Impropriety In Union Elections

https://lri.link/3e1ylPp

 

NLRB Rules Employers May Not Unilaterally Stop Union Dues Checkoff When Labor Contracts End

https://lri.link/3SSdfS9

 

New Supreme Court Case Could Weaken Unions' Ability To Strike 

https://lri.link/3SID5Zo

 

U.S. Supreme Court To Decide If Employers Can Sue Unions Over Vandalism

https://lri.link/3M63jSV

 

What Manufacturing and Other Employers Can Expect From Biden National Labor Relations Board

https://lri.link/3RzMTUb

 

Labor Board Reverses T-Mobile Email Decision In Unions' Favor

https://lri.link/3EiNLcC

            

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Alongside Farmworkers at the State Capitol, Governor Newsom Signs Law Expanding Farmworker Union Rights

https://lri.link/3ya653O

 

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Union Corruption

 

EEOC Sues Teamsters Local Union #455 For Sexual Harassment

https://lri.link/3SAc7mB

 

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Organizing

 

Here’s How A Recession Could Hurt – Or Help – Unions At Big Companies Like Starbucks And Amazon

https://lri.link/3yeMwYe

 

How Did Boston Starbucks Workers Make Out After 2 Months Of Striking?

https://lri.link/3yDJRYr

 

Houston Starbucks Workers Go On Temporary Strike After Union Leader Fired

https://lri.link/3ygdAGt

 

Starbucks Workers Have Unionized At Record Speed; Many Fear Retaliation Now

https://lri.link/3fGaEfZ

 

Good Day Farm Cannabis Workers File Petition For Union Election

https://lri.link/3C8reN5

 

Staffers In Michigan Democratic Lawmaker’s Office Vote To Form Union, First Of Its Kind On Capitol Hill

https://lri.link/3rv9vu8

 

Kellogg Workers At MorningStar Plant Vote Against Unionization

https://lri.link/3Rt9MZn

 

Pineapple Street Podcast Staffers Join Union Organizing Wave

https://lri.link/3SxmSpH

 

Apple Oklahoma City Store Staff To Vote Next Month On Unionizing

https://lri.link/3SPHMjC

 

NLRB Issues Complaint Against Apple

https://lri.link/3M7t2KK

 

Non-Tenure Skidmore College Faculty Votes To Unionize With SEIU

https://lri.link/3C4uKI7

 

Twin City Condo Workers Vote To Strike As They Seek Union Recognition

https://lri.link/3M5e9bU

 

Brooklyn Museum Workers Rally At Open House To Call Attention To Stalled Contract Negotiations

https://lri.link/3EbWeOH

 

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Manufacturing

 

Ford Motor Co. To Invest $700 million, Create 500 Full-Time Jobs At Kentucky Truck Plant

https://lri.link/3rvW3q5

 

Exxon Refinery Lockout ‘Unlawful,' Back Pay Sought By U.S. Labor Board 

https://lri.link/3CrDsSd

 

Strike At Sysco In Syracuse Threatens Food Supplies To Restaurants, Hospitals, And More

https://lri.link/3fJTeiE

 

Customers Deal With Impact Of Strike At Central NY's Biggest Food Distributor

https://lri.link/3UZr6bi

 

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Transportation

 

Seattle Dispute Disrupts U.S. West Coast Port Labor Talks

https://lri.link/3fEQkf1

 

Latest On Ratification Status At U.S. Railroad Unions To Avoid Strike

https://lri.link/3CrC2al


 

About Labor Relations INK

Labor Relations INK is published weekly and is edited by Labor Relations Institute, Inc. Feel free to pass this newsletter on to anyone you think might enjoy it. New subscribers can sign up by visiting here.


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Contributing editors for this issue: Phillip Wilson, Greg Kittinger, and Kimberly Ricci 


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About Labor Relations Institute

LRI exists to help our clients thrive and become extraordinary workplaces. We improve the lives of working people by strengthening relationships with their leaders and each other. For over 41 years LRI has led the labor and employee relations industry, driven by our core values and our proven process, the LRI Way.

 

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