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Around the Regions
MARYLAND
Maryland Members Tackle Short-staffing 1199ers from Maryland came together with their elected officials and the Caring Across Maryland coalition on January 24 to support the Nursing Home Staffing Crisis Funding Act of 2024. The legislation aims to direct additional state funds towards improving wages and tackling the nursing home labor shortage. It would stipulate that skilled nursing homes allocate a portion of Medicaid
reimbursements to increased wages and improved benefits. Ditanya Rosebud, an 1199 cook at the Levindale Hebrew and Geriatric Center in Baltimore, explained: "Short staffing was an issue before the pandemic, but since the pandemic, it has become a full-blown crisis. Back in the day when we had good staffing ratios, I cooked lunch and dinner for 15 residents. We used to work in smaller household kitchens
where we could spend quality time with the residents as we prepared their meals. It was a family-like dynamic, and the social aspect of mealtime made the residents and the workers feel good. “Now, I cook for 30 residents. I’m doing literally double the work for the same pay. Since we became permanently short staffed, cooks only work in the main kitchen in the basement. We no longer have the opportunity to interact with the residents we have spent decades feeding and bonding with. Working short-staffed feels more like being on an assembly line than being a part of a care team. We are always in “go mode” which is very stressful on our minds and bodies.” Raising wages will help reduce chronic short staffing by making those who have been working through this crisis feel more appreciated and less likely to quit. “Robbing Peter to pay Paul is unsustainable,” adds Rosebud, “I care for my two grandchildren. They play sports and I want to be able to afford to buy them more nutritious foods, but those are the foods that are most expensive. If I got a wage increase and could cover all my bills, I would spend anything extra on improving my grandchildren’s quality of life.”
“Short staffing was an issue before the pandemic, but since the pandemic, it has become a full-blown crisis.” – Ditanya Rosebud, 1199 cook at the Levindale Hebrew and Geriatric Center in Baltimore
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January-February 2024
Floridians Unite for Reproductive Rights Florida 1199ers joined forces with a coalition of reproductive rights supporters to put the issue of abortion on the November 2024 general election ballot. On January 5, the activists announced that they had gathered enough signatures give Floridians the chance to vote down a potential six-week abortion ban. Election officials verified 910,946 petitions submitted by Floridians Protecting Freedom, which is 20,000 more signatures than are needed to get the issue onto the ballot.
Deborah Montgomery, an 1199 RN and mother of a teenaged daughter, has consistently championed the need to protect abortion rights. “I’m insulted and incensed by the deep intrusion and radical attacks on women’s healthcare and reproductive rights by Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, and the GOP legislature.” As a lactation nurse who works directly with new mothers and babies, Montgomery has seen firsthand the tragedies that result from dangerous, forced or unwanted pregnancies. Babies arrive in the
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit with little hope for a healthy, happy life, and young mothers and families face heartbreak. The petition announcement demonstrates strong support for women’s reproductive freedom amongst Florida voters.
“I’m insulted and incensed by the deep intrusion and radical attacks on women’s healthcare and reproductive rights by Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, and the GOP legislature.” – Deborah Montgomery, 1199 RN
Upstate 1199ers Commemorate Dr. King
Boston Hospital Members Win Substantial Raises More than 1,600 hospital members at Boston Medical Center ratified a strong four-year contract on December 13 which included wage increases of up to 39 percent based on market adjustments, experience and annual raises. Helena Hawko, an 1199 Surgical Technician at the hospital, said: “I've worked at BMC for 17 years, and my coworkers and I have had to watch techs at other hospitals be paid at a rate that BMC refused to match. In this contract, we pushed management to pay us closer to what our skills are worth,” In addition to higher wages, members maintained access to free and low-cost educational opportunities, created a public health emergency committee and a pathway to paid trainingmentorship for existing staff. The bargaining unit includes social work, patient access, laboratory, ambulatory care and radiology departments.
FLORIDA
Ditanya Rosebud speaks at the podium in Baltimore, MD. 1199 members celebrate with Boston City Councilor, Tania FernandesAnderson (wearing pink).
Upstate 1199 members who live near Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse came together at a series of events in January to honor the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. “Dr. King has always spoken on the injustices of laborers,” said Angela Haynes, CNA at Elderwood at Williamsville, near Buffalo, who attended the luncheon to honor those whose work impacts the lives of workers and the Buffalo community. “I was so impressed with the people nominated. It was an honor to see and feel the passion in their fight to help others,” she added. Rochester members hosted a celebration where their state Senator Jeremy Cooney delivered a keynote speech. The event also commemorated the life of Bruce Popper, the retired 1199 Vice President who passed away in 2022. In Syracuse, 1199ers got up early on Marting Luther King day to participate in the joint labor and community day of service in honor of the great civil rights leader. Volunteers delivered warm clothes, sandwiches and toiletries to people in need in the local community.
Alicia Baker, a homecare worker from the Weinberg Campus near Buffalo attends the MLK event.
1199 Magazine
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