I am disheartened by the letters in your paper from three doctors and a nurse at West Suburban Medical Center. [West Sub employees write against union’s tactics, Viewpoints, May 20] Much of what they said sounded to me like right-wing, anti-union talking points and unfounded fears.
As an American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees retiree, I see things differently. As a union member, I could speak out when inexperienced supervisors tried to enact policies, which I had already seen fail in the past, and not lose my job over it. I have been following the organizing campaign at West Sub and supporting the many employees involved. For years, I have talked with employees at the hospital who are trying to have a voice in how to better care for the patients and better the conditions under which they work.
An underlying assumption in the letters is that unions are bad. Unions are necessary in an imperfect world because managers do not always do the fair, just or even the most intelligent thing. Employees are organizing for better conditions to take care of the patients and to get fair treatment for themselves. Management, on the other hand, holds the power to discipline or fire workers. From what I have heard from employees, I am sure workers are well aware management does not want them to have a union.
We as a community need to take a look at the real state of affairs at West Sub and then let employees decide, without coercion, what they want to do for their future. This is nothing to be afraid of.
Patrick Dooley
Oak Park
Â
We are writing in response to the May 20 letters to the editor about West Suburban Medical Center employees who are forming a union with AFSCME Council 31. The letters all sought to defend West Sub’s reputation but did not address the concerns about quality of care that employees, patients and area residents have repeatedly raised.
No one disputes that there are many, many dedicated professionals and support staff at West Sub, most who were there before our community hospital was taken over by Resurrection Health Care. However isn’t it true that, unlike the vast majority of hospitals, West Sub is not accredited by the non-profit Joint Committee for Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations? Isn’t it true that nurse staffing levels are lower at West Sub than at other area hospitals?
West Sub employees have repeatedly asked management to sit down and discuss these concerns but have repeatedly been ignored. For the last several years, we have heard West Sub staff speak movingly about how they are unable to provide the level of care that meets their standards and to which their patients are entitled because of a lack of staff and other management-imposed restrictions. That is, they are unable to provide the same level of care they did before West Sub became part of Resurrection Health Care.
Most recently, more than 700 nurses at Resurrection hospitals signed a petition calling for improved nurse staffing. Once again, their request was denied. Our community should be concerned about why West Sub is attacking the messenger instead of listening to the voices of those on the frontlines of patient care.
Margaret Field and Dick Kelly
Oak Park
Â
I’ve been helping the employees at West Suburban Medical Center form a union with AFSCME Council 31, and feel I the need to correct some errors in letters to the editor that were recently published.
One letter stated that AFSCME wants to take away the employees’ choice in whether or not they want to form a union. That is completely untrue. For years, Resurrection employees organizing with AFSCME have been asking for Resurrection executives to sit down for a dialogue with the union so the parties may agree to an organizing process that is free of fear and intimidation. Unfortunately, Resurrection management has repeatedly refused to even talk to the union.
AFSCME has raised questions about the quality of care at West Sub because, for years, management has ignored their own employees who raise concerns. Employees are concerned that unlike most hospitals, West Sub is not accredited by the Joint Committee for Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Employees are concerned that nurse staffing levels are so low that nurses get overworked and feel burnt out. Employees are concerned when the hospital is cited for deficiencies by state agencies.
It’s easy for West Sub management to rail against the union when these concerns are raised. However, as members of this community we should support employees of our community hospital who are trying to improve quality.
Lora Roberson
Oak Park
Â
For five years now, I have been actively involved in the organizing campaign at West Suburban Medical Center. It is a campaign of accountability. Why do nurses want a union? Because more and more we are seeing resources dedicated to bricks and mortar, executive salaries, consultants and image. The priority of health care should be on its people, safety and quality care.
It’s not easy being an organizer. The playing field is clearly unequal. Employees who are visibly supportive have and continue being written up, told they are being watched or diminished professionally. In fact, Resurrection recently settled an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board after Resurrection omitted my name from a hospital-wide brochure that recognized West Sub nurse leaders. In an environment where employees experience first hand, or feel the ripple effect of intimidation, no democratic choice to organize can be made. What we are asking for is a dialogue for a fair process in choosing our union.
The nurses who are working hard for quality care are not only the backbone of the hospital; they are educated, informed, highly skilled professionals who take care of you and your family every day.
Kelly Beringer
Registered nurse, West Sub
Oak Park