Striking California nurses refuse to return to work

sjoe · Dec 9, 2002

"A spokeswoman for the California Nurses Association charged that Tenet Healthcare Corp., the for-profit national hospital chain that runs the facilities, has only backed off from threats of permanently replacing nurses under public pressure. "

Speaking, once again, of Tenet, here's a quote from the current Business Week:

"More bad news from Tenet healthcare hasn't deterred investors. On Dec. 3, the Santa Barbara (Calif.) hospital operator dropped its earnings estimates for fiscal 2003 from $1.4 billion to less than $1.3 billion. It also expects earnings to slide to $950 million in 2004. Tenet assumes that a Medicare loophole that had allowed it to collect unusually high payments will be closed. But Tenet promised to buy back some of its battered shares, sending its stock up 5%, to $18.75, on Dec. 4."

And now, besides Medicare, those mean nurses in Contra Costa county are also picking on Tenet. Can't they understand the company will make only a paltry $1.3 BILLION in profits next year? How can they reasonably expect their demands to be met?

Yeah, right.

NMAguiar · Dec 9, 2002

Can you believe this? This thinking that threatening to fire nurses carries the same weight as it did, well, when there WASN'T a dozen hospitals within spitting distance ready to offer you a job!

I'll bet the other Bay Area hospitals are salivating over hiring some of those displaced Tenet nurses.

Anyway, every story written in California about either Tenet or the Pinole Doctor's Hospital strike is here, if you want more background. Just do a key-word search on the home page or archives. You won't freak'in believe the stuff being written DAILY about Tenet. :(

NMAguiar · Dec 9, 2002

Oh, SJoe, you know I always respect your opinion. But to shine a little light into your day, I have my doubts if Tenet is going to have as easy a time of it in the future.

Seriously, according to my last post, some newspaper in California has a negative story about Tenet EVERY DAY -- usually more than one story. There are dozens of reporters out there right now digging up the next Tenet scandal. I suspect their value is dropping as we speak -- next come the government investigations.