tr?id=&ev=PageView&noscript=

Thousands of union nurses at Mid-Michigan’s largest hospital stand ready to strike

By Kyle Kaminski

December 17, 2024

Thousands of nurses and healthcare professionals at UM Health-Sparrow in Lansing are preparing to strike after two months of working without a union contract.

LANSING—About 2,000 nurses and healthcare professionals at Mid-Michigan’s largest healthcare provider could soon be going on strike depending on how contract negotiations pan out this week between union and corporate officials at University of Michigan Health-Sparrow.

Nearly every member of the Professional Employee Council of Sparrow Hospital-Michigan Nurses Association (PECSH-MNA) voted this month to authorize their bargaining team to call a strike with a 10-day notice. And their next move could hinge on whether or not the union can sort out a “fair” contract with corporate officials at the bargaining table before the holidays.

“The next few days will be telling for whether or not the hospital is serious about a fair contract,” PECSH-MNA President Jeff Breslin told The ‘Gander on Monday. “We don’t want a work stoppage, but we will not accept a subpar contract. We have to get something in place that is going to help attract and retain the health care professionals that this community deserves.”

Here’s the deal:

UM Health Sparrow—formerly Sparrow Health System—is the largest healthcare provider in Mid-Michigan, with more than 150 care sites and nearly 500 primary care providers and specialists serving patients across the region, including at its 700-bed hospital in Lansing. 

Its stated mission is to “improve the health of the people in our communities by providing quality, compassionate care to every patient, every time.” But in recent years, Breslin said, the health care system has been prioritizing its profits over the well-being of its own staff and patients.

“This is not unique,” Breslin said. “These healthcare corporations are in the business of making money. They happen to do it by providing healthcare. Inherently, that involves increasing profits. But there needs to be a better balance. … They can’t go so far toward the business side that they forget about the clinical side. We’re here to make sure they don’t forget about that.”

Collective bargaining agreements for about 2,000 PECSH-MNA members expired in October.

And despite more than 300 hours of negotiations since August, corporate officials have failed to meet the union’s demands for a new contract—particularly when it comes to higher wages, better benefits, and improved hospital safety measures for patients and staff, Breslin said.

What does the union want?

Among PECSH-MNA’s top demands for a new contract: 

What’s at stake?

Union nurses hope that higher wages and better benefits will help to attract new employees who, in turn, can fill staffing shortages across the local health care system—which has forced some nurses to take care of more patients and spend less time with each of them.

“The nurses that are working in the ER are taking care of sometimes double the number of patients that they should be taking care of,” longtime nurse Jen Ackley told The ‘Gander. “When that happens, you know, you can imagine that they can only get the very bare minimum of me.”

Ackley said she wants to take care of her patients and give them the very best treatment. But staff shortages at the hospital in Lansing have forced nurses like her to compromise the quality of care they can give—which can also take a personal toll on them as providers.

“Over time, there’s just a huge amount of moral injury that goes along with that for me as a provider,” she said. “It’s just not something that you can do year after year after year—continue to go to the bedside for those minimal wages when your soul is being destroyed because you’re not taking good care of your patients day to day.”

So far, the negotiating team’s proposals “don’t even keep up with the cost of living,” Breslin said. 

“And if we can’t attract staff to fill the [vacancies] that we have, we’re just not going to be able to take care of the community in the way they deserve,” he added.

The UM Health-Sparrow hospital in Lansing is the region’s only Level 1 Trauma Center, which means it’s uniquely equipped to handle the most severe and complex injuries with 24/7 access to specialized surgeons, comprehensive emergency care, and advanced diagnostic equipment.

Level 1 Trauma Centers are critical for providing life-saving care in emergencies, especially in regions where alternative facilities are far away. The next-closest Level 1 Trauma Center is in Flint or Ann Arbor, more than 50 miles away.

Breslin said better wages and benefits will be crucial for ensuring the hospital has the staff to provide adequate care for thousands of patients who seek care there on a daily basis.

“The hospital is just not filling positions right now. That’s why we have such a big focus on wages and benefits,” Breslin said. “You shouldn’t live in Lansing and have to drive to Ann Arbor to get your healthcare. We’ve got the talent. We just need support from the hospital system.”

Amid the ongoing contract negotiations, UM Health is investing heavily in infrastructure. However, union leaders warn that persistent staffing shortages could undermine these investments, leaving new facilities underutilized if there aren’t enough workers to staff them.

Since acquiring Sparrow Health System in 2023, UM Health has announced plans for a $97 million psychiatric hospital in Lansing, as well as broken ground on a $32 million health center near Grand Ledge. Breslin said the union supports those expansion plans—but only if corporate officials can pony up better wages and benefits for the staff who will work inside those buildings.

“If there’s a brand new building with no staff, how are you going to run that place?” Breslin said. “We just want it to be safe and we want to be able to provide the care that patients deserve.”

What’s next?

Union members are frustrated by what they’ve described as lackluster offers from Sparrow executives. But the collective bargaining team is still “incredibly energized” as they head into another round of contract negotiations that are set to continue through Thursday, Dec. 19. 

“There’s just a huge amount of solidarity from our members who are standing with us,” Ackley said. “We’re standing together, shoulder-to-shoulder, to fight for what our community deserves.”

If no agreement is reached by the end of this week’s negotiations, the union could issue a 10-day strike notice—giving the hospital time to prepare for potential disruptions in January.

Breslin said no hard deadlines have been set as the negotiations continue.

“The local community needs to know that we’d never do anything to put them in harm’s way,” Breslin told The ‘Gander. “If it does come down to a strike, there will be a 10-day notice—so they can reduce elective surgeries or send patients out to other facilities if necessary. They could also bring in temporary workers while we’re out on the picket line. I’m hoping it doesn’t come to that, but if it does, it’s the hospital’s responsibility to make sure patients receive care.”

In a statement sent to multiple media outlets last week, officials at UM Health Sparrow said they were “disappointed” that PECSH-MNA members had voted to authorize a strike—but were “confident” that a collective bargaining agreement could be settled over the coming days.

“We are committed to continuing collaborative discussions with team members that represent our valued patient care teams and play an important role in health care delivery,” it reads. “The hospital system says it is planning to ensure safe staffing levels if a strike occurs and it looks forward to continuing to work in good faith with the union to negotiate a fair contract.”

READ MORE: UMH-Sparrow nurses vote overwhelmingly for pre-strike authorization

For the latest Michigan news, follow The ‘Gander on Twitter.

Follow Political Correspondent Kyle Kaminski here.

Author

  • Kyle Kaminski

    Kyle Kaminski is an award-winning investigative journalist with more than a decade of experience covering news across Michigan. Prior to joining The ‘Gander, Kyle worked as the managing editor at City Pulse in Lansing and as a reporter for the Traverse City Record-Eagle.

CATEGORIES: MONEY AND JOBS

Support Our Cause

Thank you for taking the time to read our work. Before you go, we hope you'll consider supporting our values-driven journalism, which has always strived to make clear what's really at stake for Michiganders and our future.

Since day one, our goal here at The 'Gander has always been to empower people across the state with fact-based news and information. We believe that when people are armed with knowledge about what's happening in their local, state, and federal governments—including who is working on their behalf and who is actively trying to block efforts aimed at improving the daily lives of Michigan families—they will be inspired to become civically engaged.

Karel Vega
Karel Vega, Community Editor
Your support keeps us going
Help us continue delivering fact-based news to Michiganders
Related Stories
Share This