Sparrow Hospital workers call for fairer pay and better benefits at Wednesday’s “informational strike,” November 2021. | Anna Gustafson
The union representing approximately 2,000 nurses and health care professionals at the University of Michigan Health-Sparrow in Lansing says it will conduct a five-day strike beginning at 7 a.m. Jan. 20.
The Professional Employee Council of Sparrow Hospital-Michigan Nurses Association (PECSH-MNA), which has been working without a contract since it expired Oct. 30, provided mandatory notice Tuesday of their intention to strike.
It followed a vote in December by 98.7% of members to authorize the bargaining team to call a strike if needed.
The union said while there had been some recent progress, negotiations since August have overall “failed to produce a contract that meets the caregivers’ needs for affordable healthcare, competitive wages, and safe working conditions.”
Additionally, PECSH-MNA says it has also filed federal unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) alleging a pattern of bad-faith bargaining by UMH-Sparrow that included:
- Interrogating a member about whether they would go on strike if one were called.
- Implementing new job positions without giving notice or bargaining with the union.
- Bargaining while withholding information; specifically, bargaining over health insurance while it is believed they were fully aware that the corporation planned to close the health insurance plan that it bought when it acquired Sparrow, upon which many employees rely.
- Illegally polling employees by offering them the chance to sign up for a free T-shirt on the first day of the strike authorization vote.
- Unilaterally modifying terms and conditions of employment under an expired contract.
While Sparrow did not address those allegations in its response, spokesperson Corey Alexander said they were nonetheless disappointed that the 10-day notice of a work stoppage had been issued.
“It is important to note that while a work stoppage is now a possibility, we remain confident that we can reach an agreement without one,” said Alexander. “We are currently taking steps to ensure that — in the unfortunate event that a work stoppage occurs — patients can still expect to receive the same safe, leading-edge and compassionate care close to home.”
Alexander added that they have a contingency plan in place for staffing and plan to be fully operational if there is a work stoppage, with safety and quality of care remaining of the utmost importance.
“University of Michigan Health-Sparrow will continue to negotiate in good faith with our valued nurses and health care professionals for a fair contract that meets everyone’s needs while also ensuring our patients receive the highest quality of care,” said Alexander.
Leah Rasch, a registered nurse and co-chair of the PECSH-MNA bargaining team, said the strike became necessary due to what she characterized as UMH-Sparrow’s anti-union behavior and refusal to bargain a fair contract.
“It is not too much to ask that the University of Michigan, which has billions of dollars in resources, invest in competitive wages and affordable healthcare for the people who provide the care at their Lansing facilities,” she said.
This is the first contract that PECSH-MNA has negotiated since University of Michigan Health bought Sparrow for an undisclosed amount in 2023. Since then, U of M Health-Sparrow has announced plans to build a $97 million psychiatric hospital in Lansing and has broken ground on a $32 million health center near Grand Ledge.
Coming on top of the nearly $1 billion U of M Health is spending on a new hospital on its Ann Arbor campus, Lindsey Davis, a social worker in behavioral health and a member of the PECSH-MNA bargaining team, called it “heartbreaking” that a strike became necessary against an employer that with seemingly unlimited funds for buildings while showing a lack of commitment to investing in the staff who do the work.
“I’ll be out on the picket line with my union siblings, standing up for what’s fair and right,” said David. “All the community support means the world to us; people understand that a strong contract is necessary to recruit and retain enough nurses and healthcare professionals to take care of our loved ones and neighbors.”
The union said that while the strike takes place, starting at 7 a.m. Jan. 20 and concluding on the morning of Jan. 25, PECSH-MNA members will picket peacefully until 9 p.m. each night outside the main hospital, the Emergency Department in Okemos, and Sparrow Health Center on East Grand River in Lansing, and that access to Sparrow facilities will not be disrupted. The union said that community members are welcome to join the picket lines at any time.
The parties are scheduled to bargain again on Jan. 16 and 17, and in its announcement, PECSH-MNA said it is willing to consider additional negotiation dates before the strike if that would be productive.
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