Strike Called Off After Civista Threats

Monday, May 7, 2012

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

Nurses at Civista Medical Center called off their planned May 8-9 strike after the hospital threatened to replace workers who walked out. Civista RN Patti D’Ambrosio called the threat “intimidation,” and SEIU 1199 spokeswoman Maureen Higgins told The Maryland Independent that the nurses decided on May 3 to cancel the strike because of concern about patients, not fear for their jobs. “They’re really concerned that management would lock them out for a week and during that time, they would have the hospital staffed by temporary nurses who don’t know the hospital and don’t know the patients,” Higgins said. “There is a staffing crisis at Civista and the hospital administration is making it worse by unlawfully threatening to replace experienced nurses,” said Gail Kingman, a Civista RN. The union has filed an “unfair labor practice” complaint with the National Labor Relations Board.  The planned strike was intended to pressure the hospital to improve its wage offer and increase staffing levels in ongoing contract negotiations.
- adapted from The Maryland Independent's report; check the Protecting Civista Care site for details . 

 

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