Editor’s note: This story was updated after the broadcast report was aired.
Union members rallied Thursday to support 1,700 nurses 40 days on strike at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick. It’s been almost a month since the sides sat down to negotiate.
The sides met with a federal mediator on Thursday, but the talks ended with the United Steelworkers Local 4-200, the union that represents the nurses, saying hospital management refused to set a date for another meeting, despite Gov. Phil Murphy urging both sides to keep negotiating.
In a statement, union president Judy Danella said, “We remain frustrated at the refusal of RWJBarnabas’ corporate executives to engage in round-the-clock bargaining — or even to agree to another bargaining date. We will only reach a contract that is fair to front-line nurses and improves safety for patients if the corporate executives at RWJBarnabas agree to sit across the negotiating table from us and bargain in good faith. We agree with Governor Murphy’s statement today that we should ‘get in the room’ and keep negotiating until we come to a fair agreement and thank the governor for his strong comments.”
Wendy Gottsegen, a spokesperson for the hospital, said in a statement, “The union’s claims about the hospital’s unwillingness to participate in ‘round-the-clock’ negotiations are bogus. The dates and length of sessions are set by the federal mediators, not the hospital or the union. The union knows this full well but chooses to misrepresent the facts, once again.
“Today, the parties attended a mediation session called for by the two federal mediators who have jurisdiction over the strike. The session lasted six hours and was concluded by the mediators. During the session, the hospital proposed two options to the union for settlement: The first option offered the union the opportunity to return to work and submit the dispute to binding arbitration — which the hospital first proposed in July — with the arbitrator having the authority to set terms for a new collective bargaining agreement between the parties. The second option was the hospital’s Aug. 2 proposal to the union, which the union never submitted to its membership for a vote.
“The union advised the hospital that it was going to take both options back to its membership for a vote. The hospital is to hear back from the union on Tues., Sept. 19.
“RWJUH is doing everything it can to end this strike. The strike is taking hundreds of thousands of dollars per day out of the pockets of our nurses and their families. The cost of the strike is too great for it to continue indefinitely. We urge the Steel Workers to prioritize the best interests of our nurses and their families. The strike must end.”
Earlier on Thursday, at the rally in support of the nurses, Danella said, “We were ready to sit all night long. We’re ready to sit anytime the hospital wants us to negotiate. We are here to resume bargaining. We are here to get a deal.”
RWJ recently canceled health insurance for the striking nurses, who can pay to pick up extended COBRA coverage. Management said it’s standard practice to deny benefits for people who are not working. The union accused management of union-busting.
Striking nurses say that they have rejected multiple offers over one fundamental issue: enforceable staffing ratios. They want agreements similar to those reached by nurses at Montefiore Hospital in New York City, to protect both staff and patients.
Hospital management said it addressed staffing ratio concerns by offering to pay nurses more if their unit fails to meet preferred standards, but the union said no. Hospital management also argued its staffing levels already rank among New Jersey’s highest. Management texted striking nurses on Thursday, claiming it had warned union leaders “the hospital would never agree to California like unqualified ratios. Your leaders have known since April. That’s why the hospital negotiated this issue in good faith…”
“What they said today basically was that, everything that the union has told you is a lie. And I’m here to tell you, I have never been a liar. Nor do I intend to start being a liar,” Danella said.
The union expressed outrage. It’s counting on support from U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), who said this job action could set a precedent, noting, “This has implications for the whole country. This is not just a local strike. These nurses are standing up for not just themselves — they’re standing up for their patients and their profession. ”
The hospital remains open, staffed by traveling nurses.
Editor’s note: RWJBarnabas Health is an underwriter of NJ Spotlight News.
