Loretto Hospital Strike: Workers Demand Better Conditions and Pay

Loretto Hospital Strike: Service, care, and technical staff at Loretto Hospital are getting ready for a walkout on Monday morning. The hospital workers on the West Side will form a picket line at dawn to ask for a new contract that addresses their worries.

They want to be paid enough to live on, have better working conditions, and be recognized for the important part they play in giving good healthcare. The  Healthcare employee are driven to get better health care.

The union said that there was a big problem with hiring at Loretto Hospital. 25–35% of job openings cause problems for business and patient care. The school also has trouble with 60% of its staff leaving every year.

Even though Loretto Hospital got $10 million from Illinois to help hire and keep workers, it hasn’t been able to offer competitive pay like other hospitals have. This imbalance has made hardworking workers angry.

Loretto Hospital hasn’t said anything about the strike. As emotions rise, the hospital management must do something about the problems of the workers.

The labor problem started when George Miller quit his job as CEO and president of the hospital all of a sudden last year. In a short letter, the hospital’s general counsel told workers that he was leaving. This made them worry and want answers.

During this change in leadership, the Block Club Chicago and the Better Government Association looked into what was going on. These investigations showed that Loretto Hospital had been bad with its money and raised questions about how the COVID-19 vaccine was being used when demand was high and supply was low.

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The hospital board started a thorough review into claims that executives sent city-supplied vaccines to Trump Tower downtown and other places instead of giving priority to the Austin community that Loretto Hospital serves. Some people who weren’t qualified got immunizations.

As the strike date gets closer, workers at Loretto Hospital are getting ready. They keep fighting for the rights of their employees and their patients. The hospital’s future will be closely watched to see how this big labor issue affects the West Side neighborhood and the healthcare business.

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Our Reader’s Queries

What happened at Loretto Hospital?

A pregnant woman passed away when the hospital neglected to promptly conduct an ultrasound. There is also a shortage of nurses to oversee post-surgery patients and those in the emergency department. A spokeswoman from Loretto has argued that the strike revolves around finances, not the safety of patients.

What is the largest nursing strike in history?

In Minnesota, the biggest nursing strike ever recorded in the U.S. took place in September 2022. About 15,000 nurses, who were part of the Minnesota Nurses Association, went on a three-day strike. This massive strike had a significant impact on 16 hospitals in the area.

Why are California nurses on strike?

HCA has continuously ignored nurses’ concerns about workplace violence, following California’s nurse-to-patient ratio law, and outsourcing emergency call systems, despite the union’s repeated efforts to address these issues.

When was Loretto Hospital built?

Since 1923, Loretto has been providing top-notch medical care to Chicago residents. Initially named Austin Hospital, it was founded by a team of physicians from the west side of the city.

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