Vol. 72/No. 16      April 21, 2008

The demonstration marked the end of a 10-day walkout by nurses at 11 Bay Area hospitals owned by Sutter Health. The nurses, members of the California Nurses Association, are fighting understaffing, takebacks in medical and pension benefits, and moves by Sutter to close St. Luke’s Hospital.

This is the third and longest strike by the nurses in six months. Sutter Health has kept the hospitals open during the strikes by hiring scabs to replace the nurses picketing outside.

In contract negotiations that began last spring, a central issue has been Sutter’s refusal to provide relief for nurses during meals and rest breaks. “This is huge,” said Therese, a 20-year veteran in the intensive care unit at CPMC. “When you don’t have people covering you, it’s a danger to the patients.”

The announcement of plans by Sutter Health to close St. Luke’s has been met with outrage. St. Luke’s is one of two hospitals in the southern, working-class area of the city. In the northern section there are 11 hospitals.

To emphasize the real-life impact of the moves against St. Luke’s, the striking nurses lead a New Orleans jazz-style funeral procession to the hospital on March 24, followed by a candlelight vigil.

—Betsey Stone

Aramark workers rally
in Houston for union rights
HOUSTON—More than 100 janitors, food service workers, and groundskeepers from the city’s convention centers, stadiums, ball parks, and the University of Houston marched through downtown streets and rallied outside city hall April 3 demanding union rights. The workers are part of a national drive by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and UNITE HERE to organize Aramark, one of the largest companies in the world that provide these services.

“We need decent wages and health care,” Vernita Williams told the Militant. She explained that she was making less than $7 an hour housekeeping at the George R. Brown Convention Center before she was fired last month for union organizing. “They do not treat us with respect,” said Antonio Gómez, who is also a housekeeper at the center.

“Many people here have to work two, or even three jobs to make ends meet,” said Carlos Alvarado, who has worked as a sous chef at the convention center for 16 years.

At the spirited rally, two workers from Aramark facilities in Philadelphia and New York City were greeted with loud cheers and chants of “Sí se puede!” (Yes we can!). These Aramark workers are joining rallies across the country on a tour that will finish in New York City April 10 at a rally outside Goldman Sachs, one of the four firms that control Aramark.

—Jacquie Henderson  
 
 
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