The following is a roundup of recent events pertaining to hospital-union relationships, including strikes, rallies and new contract agreements. All events were reported since the beginning of April, starting with the most recent.
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A committee of executives and board members from Dallas-based Parkland Hospital recommended raising the hospital's minimum wage from $8.78 an hour to $10.25 an hour, according to a Dallas News report.
The federal Health Resources and Services Administration has created a Bureau of Health Workforce, which will develop, implement and evaluate programs to strengthen the United States' healthcare workforce.
Coshocton (Ohio) County Memorial Hospital and the Ohio Nurses Association have reached a contract agreement that will run through 2017, according to a Coshocton Tribune report.
Professional and technical workers at Bremerton, Wash.-based Harrison Medical Center will vote on whether to authorize a strike June 10, according to a report from the Central Kitsap Reporter.
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The healthcare industry added 34,000 jobs last month, twice its average monthly growth for the prior 12 months, according to the most recent numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
According to a survey of registered nurses in Massachusetts, commissioned by the Massachusetts Nurses Association/National Nurses United, nearly 80 percent of the state's RNs say the quality of care provided in hospitals is suffering because of unsafe staffing levels.
For every 15 healthcare providers who receive the flu vaccine, there is one fewer case of the flu in the community, according to a study of California public health data from 2009- 2012.
Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic has reached an agreement with nurses at one of its satellite clinics in Austin, Minn., according to an Austin Daily Herald report.
In an effort to cut $120 million from its budget by July 2015, Vanderbilt University Medical Center is making changes to how its employees are paid and what benefits they receive.