SAULT STE. MARIE, MI— Nurses at MyMichigan Medical Center Sault have authorized another strike—this time of an indefinite duration—due to unfair labor practices.
The Michigan Nurses Association says members voted overwhelmingly Wednesday and Thursday to authorize the action. A new MNA strike pay benefit would provide financial support. A 10-day notice would be given if a strike is called.
Soo nurses held a five-day strike in April after months of bargaining. Negotiation sessions on May 10 and May 29 did not produce an agreement. Their contract expired December 31. The 18th bargaining session is scheduled for Wednesday, June 19.
Nurses say the hospital is frequently short-staffed, to the point of sometimes compromising patient care, because Midland-based MyMichigan pays so little in the Soo.
The MNA nurses have alleged that MyMichigan has broken federal labor laws multiple times. The National Labor Relations Board is investigating the unfair labor practice charges that MNA has filed, which include accusations that MyMichigan:
• Tried to coerce the nurses into quitting their union;
• Illegally surveilled nurses at their informational picket in March, assigning an excessive number of security guards who stood watching them in hospital doorways and continuously circled the event in a van;
• Is bargaining in bad faith by (a) changing practice by refusing to properly pay nurses who forget to punch in during their shift and (b) refusing to provide information the union needs for negotiations.
