The union contract covering 1,800 carers and service workers at New York's sixth-largest employer, the University of Rochester Medical Centre (URMC), will expire Monday if no agreement is reached.
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| Care givers and URMC cannot agree to the same points. Image: collected |
New York:
Service workers of University of Rochester Medical Centre (URMC) demand more money, benefits, and dignity for their humanitarian jobs. But URMC does not care about their demands.
“The heroes are still here, but the respect and pay are not,” said Dana Allison, Patient Care Technician at URMC Strong Memorial Hospital.
Unions that work as negotiators for patient care givers and service workers employed at Strong Memorial Hospital are are 1199 200United SEIU.
Both unions are working together to negotiate one agreement that includes a fair wage increase and a quality, comprehensive benefit package that will also help to retain and recruit more workers and alleviate staffing problems across URMC.
This month, 98.5% of voting union members at URMC voted in favour of giving their bargaining committee the authority to issue a 10-day notice for an informational picket should carers and service workers not be able to reach an agreement.
Unions are outraged, saying that the URMC has spent millions purchasing buildings and increasing salaries for its top leaders as carers and service workers fight for a living wage. Since 2020, the University of Rochester and its affiliates have invested more than $74 million in real estate purchases, including College Town.
With top leaders earning so much, even the lowest-salary worker at URMC deserves to earn a living wage that allows them to provide for themselves and their families. “As a 34-year employee, I want to feel respected for the hard work we do,” said Wendell Broadhurst, Environmental Services Work Leader at URMC’s River Campus. “It’s time that all workers get the respect they deserve for their work, and we won’t settle for less,” said Broadhurst.
“Investing in workers and providing a living wage is critical to ensuring that we have enough staff to provide a high level of patient care and student services to our community,” said Tracey Harrison, 1199 SEIU Vice President for Rochester Corning. “Staffing is a problem across the hospital and campus. URMC must spend more on retaining and recruiting workers,” said Harrison.
The labour organizations are set to resume at the URMC’s Strong Memorial Hospital on Monday.