MOUNT CLEMENS, Mich. — “We’re out here for the patients,” said Mary James, a medical-surgical nurse at Mount Clemens General Hospital. “We can’t give them proper care. Money is not an issue — just give us more help,” she said.
James, a picket captain with over 30 years of nursing experience, was one of more than 500 nurses of Office and Professional Employees International Union Local 40 who went on strike Aug. 9 for better staffing levels and a modest wage increase. On Sept. 13, the nurses voted 316-21 to end the strike, agreeing to a 2 percent raise and a commitment from the hospital to hire 25 more full-time nurses.
Shortly before the settlement, on Sept. 10, James told the World that insufficient staffing at the hospital has jeopardized patient care and that the problem is getting worse. “They haven’t replaced the 100 or so nurses who have quit in the past two years,” she said, noting that it’s not unusual for each nurse to be responsible for six, eight or even more patients.
full story:
http://www.pww.org/article/articleview/5785/1/232
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