A strike by University of Illinois Hospital nurses in Chicago is entering its third day, and another strike by members of SEIU Local 73 at University of Illinois at Chicago, which includes UI Health, began Sept. 14.
The strike by members of the Illinois Nurses Association began Sept. 12 with more than 800 nurses participating, The Chicago Tribune reported.
The Illinois Nurses Association has been in negotiations with the hospital, and the three-year contract between both sides has expired.
About 1,300 INA members were slated to participate in the seven-day strike, but that number decreased after the University of Illinois board of trustees filed a lawsuit to prevent certain critical care nurses from striking in the event of a walkout. A Cook County judge ruled Sept. 11 that 525 critical care nurses could not strike because it would jeopardize patient safety, according to the Tribune. The order applies to about 114 nurses at any given time, Michael Zenn, CEO of University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics, said in a statement Sept. 12.
The hospital has engaged an agency to onboard more than 600 nurses and healthcare professionals from external sources during the strike, said Mr. Zenn.
Mr. Zenn said the hospital also went on ambulance bypass, so ambulances were not bringing new patients to the hospital. Additionally, the hospital declined transfer requests from other hospitals, canceled elective procedures and surgeries, and was working with nearby hospitals in the event University of Illinois Hospital patients require a transfer, he said. Outpatient clinics are open during regular hours.
A key issue in negotiations between the hospital and Illinois Nurses Association is staffing. The union advocates for limiting the number of patients assigned to each nurse, while the hospital supports a patient acuity-based staffing model. The union also seeks increased access to personal protective equipment and a pay raise, according to NBC 5 Chicago. CBS 2 News reported Sept. 14 that no new negotiations were scheduled.
Amid the Illinois Nurses Association strike, members of SEIU Local 73 at University of Illinois at Chicago, which includes UI Health, have also begun to strike.
SEIU Local 73 represents 4,000 clerical, service and maintenance, technical, and professional workers across the Chicago campus and at UI Health, as well as the regional campuses, and UIC Specialized Care for Children. But a small number of technical, professional and clerical bargaining unit positions are prevented from striking due to a temporary restraining order granted to Unievrsity of Illinois by the Circuit Court of Cook County, according to a statement Sept. 14 from Mr. Zenn and Michael Amiridis, chancellor of the University of Illinois at Chicago.
The union said in a news release that members who are striking walked off the job Sept. 14, demanding that administrators "respect us, protect us and pay us."
"Throughout the pandemic, UIC workers have gone to extraordinary measures, often risking their own health without the personal protective equipment they need to care for patients and serve students," SEIU Local 73 said. "Workers are striking for increased health and safety measures, higher wages and economic security so on the other side of the health crisis they can thrive."
Mr. Zenn and Mr. Amiridis said SEIU and UIC have reached tentative agreement on almost all noneconomic issues, and both sides recently began to discuss economic proposals to a greater extent. They said UIC has proposed that salary increases for union members align with the campus wage program, plus existing annual "step" salary increases for all except the professional bargaining unit. Regarding PPE, they said UIC has followed national and local public health guidance, and in many cases, UIC has implemented recommendations that go beyond CDC guidelines.
UIC's current contracts with SEIU bargaining units expired between August and December last year. Both sides are scheduled to resume bargaining Sept. 15.
Meanwhile, Mr. Zenn and Mr. Amiridis said UIC has been onboarding temporary healthcare support staff from outside agencies to fill in for striking workers, and it is requiring COVID-19 testing of any worker from a designated hotspot state before they start work.
This article was updated at 12:40 p.m. CDT on Sept. 14.