Labor organizers say next week’s union election for nurses at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital will be the state’s largest in the private sector in at least a quarter-century.
SEIU Wisconsin yesterday announced the National Labor Relations Board has set June 11 as the date for the union election, after nurses at the Madison hospital began the organizing process more than a year ago.
More than 73% of the hospital’s 870 registered nurses have signed union cards as part of the effort, yesterday’s announcement notes.
They’re seeking to address issues around “extreme understaffing” leading to burnout for nurses, “uncompetitive” pay and other concerns, according to the union. The group says staffing at the facility is about 40% lower than the average for the area, and the lowest among seven nearby hospitals.
Amid the organizing effort, SEIU claims executives at SSM Health have used “scare tactics” to discourage organization such as threatening to suspend those wearing union buttons and ripping up union flyers. The union says the health system has also been “pulling nurses away from bedside care” to attend anti-union meetings with leadership.
The health system didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the union’s allegations.
Allison Willems, a registered nurse in the hospital’s medical-surgical department, says forming a union represents an extension of the profession’s patient advocacy role, giving nurses a say in how they provide care.
“Nurses are the backbone of our hospital, and the time has come for us to be respected and heard,” she said in a statement.
Willems, who’s worked in healthcare for 12 years, says the hospital’s staffing levels aren’t set based on how sick its patients are. The hospital uses a system based on “productivity grids,” according to the union, which has been criticized by nurse advocates who say it puts profits above the needs of patients.
As a result, nurses can be stretched thin between multiple severely ill patients, adding to the strain of the job, according to Willems.
“That can be completely overwhelming, and I’ve witnessed new nurses break down crying in the middle of their shift,” she said. “It hurts your heart when you can’t answer a call quickly enough, or can’t sit with a patient and offer emotional support, or you go home at night worried sick that you might have missed something.”
Next week’s election will be held at a conference room in the hospital, with three voting windows open between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. The NLRB says all ballots will be counted after the close of the final voting session that evening.
