Health Care Workers and University of Rochester Medicine Home Care Set to Resume Contract Talks
Rochester, NY – Contract talks between home care workers and the University of Rochester Medicine Home Care resumed Tuesday.
About 115 professional and clinical home care workers from URMHC at University of Rochester Medicine Home Care (URMHC) voted to join the 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East labor union back in March.
Negotiations for the worker’s first labor contract with the largest private sector employer in Upstate, New York began in May. A Federal Mediator from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) has been brought in as both sides edge towards economic talks.
“Management isn’t giving us what we need right now at the table and they refuse to bargain long days,” said Cindy Lorenzetti, Physical Therapy Assistant. “They need to set aside more time to focus on bargaining this contract – we need more availability so we can get it done.”
1199SEIU say they are asking for reasonable patient caseloads, improved health and safety protections at work, and a comprehensive benefits package that includes competitive wages to recruit and retain staff.
“UR Medicine Home Care (URMHC), a separately licensed and managed subsidiary of the University of Rochester, has been negotiating in good faith since May with union representatives from 1199SEIU in the hope of obtaining an initial contract that is competitive, fair, and equitable. These contract negotiations have been exclusively between URMHC and 1199SEIU,” UR Medicine representatives said in a statement.
“We are sincere in our desire to reach a fair agreement and committed to treating each and every employee at URMHC fairly—both those who are union represented and those who are not. URMHC is committed to ensuring that our compensation, benefits, and policies are equitable and competitive, which is a priority for attracting and retaining employees.”
Last year bedside caregivers and service workers at University of Rochester Medical Center held a one-day strike. Since then more and more workers in Rochester have been voting to join a union and secure a contract.
Earlier this year, University of Rochester Graduate Students began forming a union to fight for living wages
In May, more than 800 Resident Physicians at the University of Buffalo formed their union. They began a 4-day strike today in Buffalo, fighting over low pay, healthcare, and retirement benefits.
Some 1,600 Home Health Aides, Personal Care Attendants and Consumer Directed Personal Attendants across New York State who are employed by Community Care Companions, Inc. voted to join 1199SEIU and ratified their first contract in June. More than 600 of those home care workers live in Upstate New York with approximately 400 of them from the Rochester area.
1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East is the largest and fastest-growing healthcare union in America. They represent over 400,000 nurses and caregivers throughout Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Washington, D.C. and Florida.
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