ST. LOUIS — It’s been nearly a year without a contract for SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital nurses, and Thursday they held a vigil for patient safety amid "unsafe staffing levels."
Throughout the negotiation process, they’ve lost nurses and said they continue to struggle to meet patients' needs because of unsafe staffing levels. SSM Health said otherwise.
SLU Hospital nurses said for roughly the last 10 months, they’ve been going through a grueling fight for a contract that not only increases wages but protects them and their patients.
“We love St. Louis," SLU Hospital nurse Gail Wanner said. "We love our urban hospital, where the most underserved, the most underprivileged come to us for care. And that's what we are here for, and we want to continue to do that."
But right now, they said unsafe staffing levels are sending them home in tears. In some departments, one nurse could be caring for eight or nine patients.
“An ideal patient ratio would be four to one in some instances. ICU should be two to one,” SLU Hospital nurse Earline Shephard said.
Wanner works in the behavioral health unit where she said the staffing crisis has a trickle-down effect.
“I'm impacted by other departments being in a staffing crisis, such as our emergency room," Wanner said. "They are in such a crisis with staffing that they don't have adequate hands on deck to do the thorough assessments to medically stabilize the patients before they bring them to us."
A spokesperson for SSM Health released the following statement early Thursday afternoon:
SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (SLU-H) leaders are fully engaged and ready to get to an agreement. We’ve met with the union countless times and offered multiple bargaining dates including weekends – most of which have been turned down. We have engaged a federal mediator at the bargaining table in hopes of achieving an agreement faster. Unfortunately, the National Nurses Organizing Committee (NNOC) is presently on another extended break from negotiations and has not made itself available for bargaining again until March 13.
Tonight’s events are another attempt by NNOC leadership to distract everyone from what matters most – getting our dedicated SLU-H nurses the strong market-competitive compensation and benefits they deserve. We have had a substantial increase in wages on the table for months, yet the NNOC is promoting their other agendas first.
Contract negotiations can only make progress when both sides are motivated and engaged in the process. Unfortunately, NNOC leaders continue to appear more focused on their political agenda than reaching a contract that supports our valued nurses at SLU-H.
We are going on nearly 10 months of negotiations – and have met at the bargaining table over 30 times since May 11, 2023. Throughout this time, NNOC has continued to stall progress – instead taking frequent breaks from bargaining to hold rallies and pickets – and even leaflet at other St. Louis-area hospitals. They’ve also called for two nursing strikes at SLU-H.
Despite these efforts to divide and disparage our expert and dedicated team of caregivers, our SLU-H team has continued to deliver exceptional patient care and service without interruption. In fact, in December, most scheduled nurses rejected the NNOC’s call to walk out on patients, and instead crossed the NNOC picket line to continue providing care. As additional evidence of the growing fatigue, more than 40% of represented nurses at the hospital are refusing to pay union dues – and only a handful have participated in the NNOC’s frequent public demonstrations. It’s unfortunate that NNOC’s priorities are anywhere but the nurses they are supposed to represent.
The NNOC is well-known across the country for its highly divisive and politically motivated strategies – particularly during contract negotiations. NNOC calls more strikes than any other union representing health care workers – and routinely pickets, issues negative press releases, and attempts to publicly disparage the patient care provided at hospitals where they represent nurses. They currently represent very few hospitals across the Midwest and are using our nursing contract to try and expand their business. While we’ve continued to maintain consistent safe high-quality patient care, the NNOC’s public rhetoric is hurtful to our nurses and other caregivers and professionals who give their all every single day. The NNOC’s shameful bargaining tactics are also counterproductive to our efforts to recruit and retain nurses at our world-class academic medical center.
When NNOC is ready to join us, SLU-H remains focused on reaching an agreement that supports our nurses – while fostering a positive, respectful, and supportive workplace where all team members can thrive.
Shephard said negotiations have improved slightly.
“It seems like they're trying to at least come to the table, at least have a conversation with us,” Shepherd said.
Nurses said they appreciate the community’s support, especially from St. Louis Board of Aldermen President Megan Green.
Green said the contract delay is hurting the community.
“It's really important that we're supporting our frontline workers. Everybody's been saying that all pandemic right, support our frontline workers. Well, the best way we can support them is by giving them a fair contract,” Green said.
The nurses said they hope to have a contract by Easter.
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