Nurses on picket line during June 10 one day strike.
(Fight Back! News/Kim DeFranco)
Minneapolis, MN - The Minnesota Nurses Association announced that a strike authorization vote will be held on June 21.
One June 10, 12,000 members of the Minnesota Nurses Association held a one-day strike that received widespread support from the labor movement and the public. Key outstanding issues include staffing ratios that protect patient safety and pensions.
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Support Nurses and all Workers
To all the folks who disagree with the nurses going on strike. Go to the picket lines and talk with them. Then ask yourself, do I want to be in a hospital that is understaffed? I went to the one day strike to talk with many different nurses. All of them were on the picket line for patients' and nurses' safety. They gave me many examples on how the lack of staffing (which has been a problem for many years) endangers everyone.
The one day replacement workers (scabs) aren't as prepared as you all think. I was told about a couple of examples where after given instructions, the scabs just looked at the real nurses like they didn't know what they were talking about.
If the nay-say'ers don't like to hear about wages the workers are asking about, ask yourself, why are the CEO and others the head up these hospitals make millions while the nurses make thousands. AND WHY... doesn't the management reject having staffing issues in the contract?
Take the challenge before you criticize.
WHAT A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR
WHAT A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR THE REPLACEMENT NURSES I HOPE THEY GET HIRED FOR PERMANENT POSITIONS. YOU NURSES ARE DEFINITELY SMART YOU USE THE SAME VICTIMIZATION TACTICS AND MEDIA BIAS AS THE TEACHERS UNION. AND THEN ON TOP OF THAT YOU DEMONIZE WEALTH ITS A POWERFUL MESSAGE AND A POWERFUL LIE. YOU MAKE A PRETTY DECENT LIVING BY ALL ACCOUNTS. WE SHOULD GO AFTER THOSE PEOPLE WHO MADE YOU GO INTO THE NURSING PROFESSION THEY SHOULD BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR ALL YOUR DISCONTENT.
Should nurses fight and will they win?
I would have to respectfully disagree with the anonymous commenter above. I was out on the picket lines supporting the nurses during their 1-day strike. From the courage and determination that I saw from the nurses, I have little doubt that if they continue to fight like they've done so far, they'll win.
The commenter's advice that, "They should be happy to have a job right now and save the strike for when the economy improves" may seem common-sense. You're not the only one to repeat that idea, that this is the "wrong time" to strike because of the bad economy. But though it seems like common sense, it's not right. It's precisely when companies are grinding down workers the most -- when the system is in crisis and trying to solve that crisis by ringing more out of the workers -- that many workers realize how much they're getting screwed and see the necessity and the possibility to fight back.
The commenter above also advises the nurses to, "take a 10% cut so the hospital can take on more staff." But the choice between layoffs and pay cuts is a false choice. The option conveniently left off the menu is to use some of the huge profits that the hospital corporations are raking in to hire enough workers so that the staffing ratios are safe and sane, and to pay the nurses a decent pension so they can retire with dignity after spending so many years giving their all caring for others. No nurses need to take pay cuts to do that. The money is there. Workers don't have to be like crabs in a bucket, fighting each other over crumbs while executives laugh all the way to the bank.
What planet are they living on?
There are college educated people who have been unemployed upwards of a year and others who have not had increases in years and then taken 10% pay cuts company wide this year. What are they thinking? More staff needed? Okay, then take a 10% cut so the hospital can take on more staff. They should be happy to have a job right now and save the strike for when the economy improves. They will not win this one.
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