KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Nurses at Ascension Borgess Hospital in Kalamazoo announced Tuesday that they will hold a strike authorization vote unless they can reach a tentative new contract agreement.
Negotiations between nurses and Ascension’s administration are set to continue Thursday, December 1.
If the two parties can’t come up with a deal by the end of the week, nurses say they will hold the vote Monday, December 5 and Tuesday, December 6.
“We are exhausted. We are fed up. We are done watching our rights be taken away by corporate executives,” Lori Batzloff, a nurse at Ascension and the president of the local Michigan Nurses Association (MNA), said. “It’s time for this company to respect its employees and for patients to come before profits. While we are hopeful that negotiations will go well on Thursday, it is important for us to let Ascension know that nurses are prepared to do what it takes.”
The MNA says the strike authorization vote would allow nurses to choose whether their bargaining team will call for a strike.
If they decide to strike, a ten-day notice will be given before the start of the strike.
Nurses say they’re concerned about new demands from Ascension, including:
- A new requirement forcing nurses to work every other weekend
- Cuts to retirement benefits that could cost nurses $30,000 or more
- An elimination of the right to family or medical leave for part-time nurses and the potential to replace all leave guarantees with policies Ascension’s administration could change at any time
Nurses say, despite raises in the first year or their contracts, Ascension proposed wages for the following two years that fail to include a cost-of-living adjustment, which they say could lead to more staffing shortages.
“It is so sad to see the way in which these corporate executives have made healthcare about the bottom line instead of the patients,” Jenni Livingston, a nurse at Ascension and member of the bargaining team, said. “We need our next contract to move us forward, not dig us even deeper in the hole.”
Meanwhile, the MNA claims the healthcare system continues to engage in unlawful behavior.
The National Labor Relations Board already issued two complaints against Ascension Borgess Hospital for its labor practices and is investigating a third.
Nurses say the strike vote also is in part to protest this behavior.
As of Tuesday, the MNA claims nurses have been working under an expired contract since November 11.
