National Nurses United

J A N U A R Y | F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 5 W W W . N A T I O N A L N U R S E S U N I T E D . O R G N A T I O N A L N U R S E 11 WRAP-UP REPORT California this january, registered nurses and other healthcare workers employed by the Daugh- ters of Charity Health System were busy testifying at public hearings and lobbying state Attorney General Kamala Harris to approve the proposed sale of six Daughters hospitals to Prime Healthcare in order to avert their shutdown, which could trigger a potential public health catastrophe in two of the state's largest metropolitan areas. "[We] strongly support the sale as the only viable way to keep these hospitals open and preserve the vital emergency and critical- care services for our patients and our communities," said Maria Canonizado, an RN at O'Connor Hospital in San Jose and a member of the California Nurses Associa- tion, which represents 1,800 RNs working for the Daughters system. The nurses' work paid off. On Feb. 20, Harris approved the sale with conditions, including the continued operation of hospi- tals for 10 years, participation in Medicare and Medicaid, providing historic levels of charity care, a guarantee of all pension obli- gations to current and retired employees, among others. With the Daughters system losing nearly $10 million a month, Prime had already committed to keep all six hospitals open for a minimum of five years; protect most of the existing 7,600 jobs; pay off nearly $750 million in tax-exempt bonds, pension, and other debts; and commit an additional $150 million to hospital improvements. When nurses first learned of the effort to sell the system, they drew up a set of guide- lines designed to protect the hospitals, patients, and the community. These include: (1) operate all DCHS hospitals as acute-care facilities, (2) maintain all existing hospital services, (3) give reasonable assurances against a short-term bankruptcy, (4) keep all promises made to retirees, and (5) honor caregivers' right to collectively bargain for their mutual aid and patient protection. Of interested buyers, only Prime satisfied these principles, although nurses also consid- ered a proposal from a Wall Street private equity firm, Blue Wolf Capital. Blue Wolf, which has a reputation for buying, gutting, and reselling businesses for quick profit, failed to satisfy the nurses' requirements. Ohio a civil jury in February ordered Affinity Medical Center, part of the notorious anti- union hospital chain Community Health Systems, to pay more than $2 million in damages to Ann Wayt, an exemplary regis- tered nurse the hospital had fired, for illegal- ly seeking to have her nursing license revoked and for defaming her in retaliation for her outspoken patient advocacy and support for her union, National Nurses Organizing Committee-Ohio. The verdict was a huge victory for the right of workers to collective action through their union. "This verdict is a clear signal that work- ing people can resist, fight back and win against even the most heavily funded attacks by those like the Koch Brothers and other far right groups and their agenda to elimi- nate unions, laws that protect workers, and public advocates for public safety and economic and workplace justice," said Malinda Markowitz, an RN and copresident of CNA/NNOC. In a unanimous verdict, the Stark County jury ordered the hospital to pay Wayt $800,000 for defamation of her character and another $750,000 in punitive damages. Affinity was also ordered to pay her attorney fees. Wayt said she decided to take on the challenge "for Affinity nurses and nurses everywhere who are fighting for their right to stand up for patients. Now they see that nurses are strong and we stick together. We aren't going to accept their bullying. I am so very thankful for all of the support of my colleagues through this very trying time. We stuck together and we prevailed!" The decision came more than two years after Wayt was fired, and a year after a U.S. District Court Judge delivered a sweeping cease-and-desist injunction ordering Affini- ty to reinstate Wayt to her job and end a broad array of illegal behavior in disciplin- ing and harassing its nurses, as well as refus- ing to bargain with RNs and NNOC-Ohio. —Staff report From top: Registered nurses and Catholic nuns make a formidable lobbying team as they support the sale of Daughters of Charity hospitals to Prime Healthcare; RN Ann Wayt (second from right) in February won a $2 million civil lawsuit against employer Communi- ty Health Systems for retaliating against her for supporting her union.

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