After reopening contract negotiations Jan. 31, talks between UPMC Altoona (Pa.) and SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania broke down Saturday, Feb. 1, according to a report from The Altoona Mirror.
SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania represents about 800 registered nurses at UPMC Altoona. The union recently announced plans to strike for 24 hours starting Feb. 11. The most recent talks between the two groups, those on Jan. 31, were scheduled in hopes of avoiding that strike.
According to the hospital, the scheduled talks were to discuss two specific issues, but the union brought a wider agenda to the table, which stopped negotiations, The Altoona Mirror reported.
The union had a different view of the broken negotiations. "We were prepared to continue negotiating until we had a contract, and it's frustrating that management did not share that commitment," Paula Stellabotte, local president of SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania, said, according to the report.
The union's main problems with the hospital's proposed contract pertain to health insurance, retirement benefits and staffing guidelines.
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