Members of the New England Health Care Employees Union, SEIU 1199NE, are set to begin an open-ended strike May 15 at Care New England’s Butler Hospital in Providence, R.I.
The union represents more than 800 front-line staff at Butler Hospital, including registered nurses, mental health workers, clerical, environmental service and dietary staff, according to an April 29 Service Employees International Union news release. Care New England has more than 8,000 employees total.
Union members voted April 25 to authorize a strike. The union and management began negotiating a new labor contract in March. In a statement shared with Becker’s, Butler Hospital said it has offered “comprehensive proposals that further our goal of addressing workplace violence and offering a total rewards package that includes generous wage increases, as well as a competitive benefits package.”
The union contends that management has not made “meaningful progress” to address these issues.
“After almost two months of negotiations, Care New England has failed to consider our proposals to offer needed training, raise wages and confront the workplace violence epidemic we experience almost daily,” Dawn Williams, RN, said in the union release. “At the end of the day, if we don’t solve these core issues, it is our patients who will suffer the consequences from the revolving door of staff who refuse to put their safety in jeopardy for the low wages we earn.”
“Striking will not bring us closer to an agreement. It will only result in lost wages for employees,” the hospital said in its statement. “We will, however, remain open and ready to accept patients during a strike. We have contracted with a third-party vendor to ensure the care our patients depend upon us for remains uninterrupted. We urge the union to reconsider this path and return to the bargaining table prepared to engage in productive dialogue.”