Tentative contract agreements have been reached at three Catholic hospitals in the Buffalo area. The new four year agreements cover nurses at the St. Joseph campus of Sisters Hospital, technical workers at Kenmore Mercy Hospital and nurses and other employees at Mercy Hospital in South Buffalo.
According to the Communication Workers of America, the union representing employees, the agreements provide for wage increases and improvements in staffing while health benefits are maintained. Ratification votes will be held in the next two weeks.
“We’re proud to have come to an agreement that will promote patient care, offers the wages to retain staff and maintains important healthcare benefits,” said Dennis Trainor, vice president of Communications Workers of America District 1 in a written statement. “The members of the bargaining committee did extraordinary work and we look forward to sharing the details with CWA members at the hospitals.”
The tentative agreements come after more than a year of active contract negotiations.
“I want to thank the bargaining teams for their extraordinary efforts and commitment to work through the complex issues we face in healthcare and find a positive way forward,” said Joe McDonald, President/CEO of Catholic Health in the same statement. “We are committed to forging a new relationship with the union, built on mutual goals that reward and recognize our dedicated associates, while strengthening our ability to deliver high quality care to this community.”
Mercy Hospital workers went as far as authorizing a strike -- which never came to pass -- though the union did stage demonstrations outside Mercy and St. Joseph.