June 23, 2016
HPAE Local 5131 President to Inspira: Invest in Healthcare and Nursing
In an op-ed published in several south Jersey newspapers, Local 5131 President Dana Barrett called on Inspira Health to focus more on the quality of care and nursing: “As nurses, we are glad for our hospital system’s prosperity, yet we struggle every day to provide our patients with the quality of care they deserve because of inadequate staffing levels. While we see millions being paid to executives and deals with board members, nurses are being told the hospital can’t afford to staff appropriately, or to provide the policies, wages or retirement security that help to keep nurses at the bedside”.
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Hackensack, Meridian Merger is Finalized
The merger of Hackensack University Health Network and Meridian Health was finalized Tuesday, uniting 11 hospitals in seven counties from the New York border to the Jersey shore, according to hospital officials. HPAE represents nurses and healthcare workers at three of the hospitals (Jersey Shore Medical Center, Southern Ocean Medical Center, and Palisades Medical Center) and a nursing home, The Harborage.
Read more here.
NJ Democratic Legislators Participate in Sit-In to Demand Vote on Gun Safety Bill
All four Democratic Congresspersons and the two U.S. Senators from New Jersey participated in a sit-in on the floor of the House of Representatives to protest the failure of the House to take a vote on bills which would ban suspected terrorists from buying weapons.
Read more here.
Minneapolis RNs Strike at Allina Hospitals
Five thousand members of the Minnesota Nurses (MNA) began a week-long strike on June 19 at five Allina hospitals in the Twin Cities. The immediate sticking point is health insurance, but this is also a showdown over nurses’ power on the job, as Allina pushes to hand over staffing decisions to a robot.
Read more here.
This Week in U.S. Labor History
Congress overrides President Harry Truman’s veto of the anti-worker Taft-Hartley Act. The law weakened unions by restricting labor’s strike and political activities, and let states prohibit union shop contract provisions which require employees to pay membership dues or a fair share payment. Twenty states immediately enacted these laws and more followed – June 23, 1947
Read about other important struggles and events in U.S. labor history which occurred from June 20 to June 26, provided by Union Communication Services (UCS).
Read more here.
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