Members of Service Employees International Union Healthcare Minnesota, a union representing food service workers at Mayo Clinic, rallied Wednesday outside the health system's Saint Marys hospital campus in Rochester, Minn., in response to Mayo's plans to outsource food and nutrition jobs, according to a KIMT report.
Supporters, city leaders and local lawmakers also participated in the rally.
One lawmaker there was State Rep. Tina Leibling (DFL). During the rally, the representative said Mayo's decision to transition the jobs could make it more challenging for her to make pitches to colleagues on behalf of the health system, according to the article.
"We know that Mayo is very important in our community, but when Mayo is doing this to employees and legislators don't see that the prosperity is broadly shared, it really makes our job more difficult to make that pitch on Mayo's behalf," she said.
In response to the rally, Mayo officials provided KIMT with a statement, saying they "understand the impact this has on our staff" and have "worked hard to ensure that employee well-being and prosperity is preserved through the transition."
Mayo said all jobs will stay local, and existing active food and nutrition employees will be offered similar positions with the new food vendor, Morrison Healthcare, at their current rate of pay, and will be credited for years of service. Mayo added that any transition offerings for union-represented employees, including offers of employment, should be negotiated with the unions representing those employees.
The rally took place days after SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, offered a "major compromise" to the health system. The compromise would resolve a labor fight sparked by Mayo's plans to switch from Sodexo to Morrison Healthcare for food and nutrition services.
According to the article, Mayo said it looks forward to productive sessions with SEIU scheduled for this month and next month. "We plan to negotiate in good faith with hopes of reaching an agreement acceptable to all parties," the health system added.
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