A protest over a lack of local jobs at Yale-New Haven (Conn.) Hospital led to 134 people being arrested on Saturday, according to a New Haven Register report.
The demonstrators were demanding more local jobs at the hospital. New Haven Rising, a citywide grassroots organization that led the protest, said more local jobs could help relieve the jobs crisis in New Haven's "hardest hit" communities, according to the report.
"As teenagers growing up in this city, our futures are bleak. So many of our parents can't get jobs. It's hard to have hope that things will be different for us," New Haven Rising member Isabel Bate told the New Haven Register. "How can a hospital system that raked in over $200 million in profit last year refuse to solve this crisis?"
The demonstrators were arrested while sitting in the middle of the intersection of Ward Street and Sylvan Avenue in New Haven.
Yale-New Haven Hospital issued a statement saying it does employ many local residents and intends to continue to do so in the future. "We share in the goal of creating and sustaining jobs for local residents. That is why we employ more than 3,000 New Haven residents in well-paid jobs with exceptional benefits — and hired more than 600 city residents last year alone," Vincent Petrini, senior vice president of public affairs at Yale-New Haven Hospital, told the New Haven Register.
More articles on workforce and labor management:
Elizabeth Seton, union reach contract: 4 things to know
Baltimore hospitals to address local systemic challenges with 375 new jobs : 6 things to know
Pittsburgh City Council calls for $15 minimum wage at hospitals: 4 things to know