On Wednesday, nurses at West Penn Hospital in Pittsburgh’s Bloomfield neighborhood voted to authorize a strike.
The union nurses, represented by SEIU Healthcare PA, voted 99.3% in favor of authorizing their negotiating committee to send a strike notice if necessary. The union in a news release said it rejected contract proposals from Allegheny Health Network that its members felt did not adequately address the region’s staffing crisis among nurses.
Union members are calling for resources to help recruit new nurses and retain experienced nurses.
SEIU in a statement said the hospital needs 100 more registered nurses to meet growing needs.
“This overwhelming vote to authorize our nurse negotiating committee to send a strike notice sends a clear message: we are united for our patients and we are not backing down,” Kari Xander, neonatal intensive care nurse and union president at West Penn Hospital, said.
Xander said they have made some progress in negotiations, but not enough.
“We don’t want to strike, but we’re ready to take action for our patients,” she said.
AHN spokeswoman Candace Herrington said the health system is hopeful the union will not actually go on strike. The vote, she said, gives the bargaining committee the authority to issue a 10-day strike notice if they choose to.
Such votes, Herrington said, are “a normal part of negotiations.”
“At AHN, we remain committed to good faith bargaining with the union and are optimistic that we can reach a contract agreement that is fair and competitive for our employees, while also fiscally responsible for our organization,” Herrington said in a statement.
Last fall, nurses at Allegheny General Hospital negotiated added investments to retain existing staff and increase starting pay to $40 an hour.
SEIU said the nurses at West Penn Hospital are looking for a similar deal.
A date for a strike at West Penn Hospital has not yet been set.
The SEIU in March said it represented 588 registered nurses at West Penn Hospital.
