Watch: Desert Regional nurses strike on Sept. 20, 2019 Nicole Hayden, The Desert Sun
The president of the national union for nurses at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center says the hospital system is being “so stupid and so tone deaf” in dealing with its nurses and their concerns about patient safety.
“There are some people in this management here who are being very Trumpian in trying to bully and silence and tell lies about who these nurses are,” said Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers.
Weingarten spoke to The Enquirer Sept. 25, a few days after she visited Cincinnati to support Jennifer Donaldson and Michelle Thoman. The two are leaders of the Registered Nurses Association, the union for about 1,200 UCMC nurses. The visit was a component of the union’s escalating response to UCMC’s treatment of the two nurses.
On Sept. 10, about 75 nurses walked an informational picket line in front of Corryville-based UCMC. For the month of September, the electronic billboard at the Martin Luther King Drive exit from southbound Interstate 71, the nearest to UCMC, has featured a union message: “Stop the Attack on Nurses.”
UCMC management fired Donaldson and disciplined Thoman in June after they made a Facebook Live video in April for union members on staffing issues. Hospital leadership said Donaldson was fired for not following procedure to take her break from her shift in labor and delivery to make the video. Thoman received a letter of warning for helping Donaldson shoot the video at the hospital, even though Thoman was not on duty at the time.
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The two nurses at UCMC, which is operated by UC Health, say they have had spotless disciplinary records. They have filed grievances over the job action, and so far, four hearings have been convened with no resolution. The nurses have also complained to the National Labor Relations Board.
Earlier this month, Amanda Nageleisen, UC Health spokeswoman said, “Our agreement with the union contains a clear policy that outlines and governs the grievance process. We respect this process and are following it accordingly."
The AFT is the second-largest nurses union in the country and counts RNA as an affiliate.
Weingarten said UCMC’s actions against Donaldson and Thoman are a symptom of a national trend of hospitals squeezing its workforce for profits, to the potential detriment of patients. When nurses point out the need to increase staff, the hospital retaliates.
“What you don’t see routinely is a hospital being so stupid and so tone-deaf that instead of actually listening to nurses, who the public loves, about what the nurses are saying about safety in the hospital, they’re trying to silence them and stifle them,” Weingarten said. “I’ve seen that before, but in a place like Cincinnati, I was really surprised about it.”
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2019-09-30 01:28:00Z
https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2019/09/29/uc-health-not-dealing-fairly-nurses-national-union-leader-says/3776880002/
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