Fiscal Note
No appropriation required.
Title
Supporting bargaining between SEIU Healthcare Wisconsin Meriter registered nurses and Meriter Unity Point Health for the good of the city.
Body
WHEREAS, Meriter Hospital has served the healthcare interests of Madison citizens since it was founded as Madison General Hospital in 1902; and
WHEREAS, Meriter has approximately 3000 employees, among them more than 750 registered nurses; and
WHEREAS, in 2014 Meriter was acquired by Unity Point Health, a multi-state healthcare organization headquartered in Iowa; and
WHEREAS, contracts agreed to through collective bargaining have ensured that the highest standards relating to staffing, safe workloads, educational opportunities, training, and employee benefits have been maintained; and
WHEREAS, decisions affecting the health and well-being of the residents of Madison are of great consequence to the City of Madison; and
WHEREAS, maintaining good-paying jobs and stable employment are indisputably in the interests of the City of Madison; and
WHEREAS, Unity Point Health seeks uniformity across their system, and almost all of their facilities do not have unionized nurses and collective bargaining agreements; and
WHEREAS, the SEIU Healthcare Wisconsin Meriter Registered Nurses and Meriter Unity Point Health are currently engaged in bargaining for a new contract;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that to ensure the ongoing health and safety of the residents of the City of Madison and to maintain the economic benefits of the stable employment base of Meriter Hospital, the Mayor and Common Council of the City of Madison call on Meriter Unity Point Health to remain a responsible employer and continue to bargain in good faith with its union and to reach an amicable collective bargaining agreement with its registered nurses, one that honors the successful tradition of working with its union that Meriter Hospital has enjoyed throughout its history, regardless of ownership.