Seattle nurses inch closer to strike, cite ‘severe’ staffing issues, overpaid CEO
Dec 19, 2019, 11:59 AM
Swedish Medical Center in Seattle. (KIRO 7)
(KIRO 7)
After voting to approve a strike in November, nurses at Seattle’s Swedish Medical Center are “moving closer” toward taking action.
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The news comes courtesy of a news release from the union, calling for the hospital to “put patient safety before CEO pay.”
“Swedish caregivers are raising alarms about severe understaffing and turnover that could cause patient harm, while Providence CEO had 157% compensation increase to over $10.5 million,” the release reads.
A potential strike would include over 8,000 nurses and caregivers at Swedish, and over 13,000 health care workers combined at 13 Providence locations across Washington state. The local union bills this as potentially the “largest healthcare strike in recent history.”
SEIU Healthcare 1199NW’s collective bargaining agreement with Swedish Medical Center expired June 30. It was extended through the end of July. Bargaining has been ongoing since April. Workers picketed in August, before voting to strike in mid-November.
While the hospital has qualified its collective bargaining proposal as “strong,” the nurses at Swedish have accused bosses of breaking federal labor laws, retaliating against workers for participating in union activity, surveilling employees, and intimidating staff members. The union also cites staffing issues that have left many overworked.
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“It’s close to impossible to offer the care our vulnerable patients need because we’re always rushing,” said one Swedish employee working in Ballard. “Many new nurses go home crying because they feel they could have done better if they had a more manageable patient load. Decisions are being made by executives in corporate offices miles away, who rarely step foot in our hospital.”
A statement released in November by Swedish noted that the hospital was “disappointed” in SEIU 1199NW’s decision to strike, and that the move would “not only represent a step backwards in our negotiations but could prove disruptive to patients who count on us for their care.”
