Nurses picket outside St. Elizabeth Medical Center
Story Created:
Sep 16, 2009 at 10:53 AM EST
Story Updated:
Sep 16, 2009 at 4:46 PM EST
UTICA, NY (WKTV) - Hundreds of nurses at Saint Elizabeth Medical Center in Utica picketed the hospital Wednesday morning.
Contract negotiations between the nurses' union, the New York State Nurses Association, and management last week resulted in NYSNA serving the hospital with a picket notice.
Signs which say, "St. Elizabeth, listen to your nurses," can be seen on lawns throughout central New York.
Among the sticking points are pension plans, which union leaders say the hospital wants to eliminate as the nurses currently know them.
"It really will affect the patient care with retaining experienced nurses; we come here to work, to learn from the nurses who've been here for 20-30 years and a lot of people will be leaving if they have nothing to hold them here for retirement; no way to live off of what they're offering," says Amanda Taurisani, a nurse at Saint Elizabeth Medical Center.
A union spokesperson says the timing couldn't be worse.
"During a nursing shortage, freezing a pension plan is not the way to keep experienced registered nurses working for you," says Mark Genovese.
Officials with Saint Elizabeth Medical Center say they are grateful for all of their nurses and the exceptional care they give their patients, and that they look forward to reaching an agreement through good faith negotiations.
They're scheduled to negotiate again on Monday.
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