TikTokers upset after woman posts ‘day in the life’ video glamorizing being a strike nurse: ‘This could not suck more’
There have been several union strikes this summer, including ones from the entertainment industry’s writers and actors, and healthcare workers in Austin have been the latest employees to join the picket lines.
While these workers have been striking, there have been people willing to take their place. These employees — also labeled as the derogatory term “scabs” — work in the position left vacant by the people on strike, their actions mostly frowned upon by the people who are picketing for workplace changes.
Recently, a nurse named Mireya Bustamante (@mireyanicoleb) posted a “day in the life” video documenting her journey as a replacement, or “strike nurse.” She was going to replace nurses at Ascension Seton Medical Center in Austin, Texas. Those nurses went on strike on June 27 to advocate for more staffingand higher retention rates.
In her video, Bustamante shows herself flying from Los Angeles, Calf. to Austin, Texas and going through onboarding after touching down.
Although there were some people who appreciated Bustamante’s efforts to care for patients during the strike, many people felt she was harming the big-picture efforts of the nurses on strike — and benefiting monetarily in the process.
“This could not suck more,” Connor Lewis (@uniondad) said in a video he stitched with Bustamante’s. “This is trying to glamourize making money off of breaking someone else’s strike.”
In The Know reached out to Bustamante for comment and hasn’t received a response.
Bustamante isn’t the only person who’s posted about strike nursing and its monetary benefits.
“POV: Leaving a Strike knowing you’ve made in a week what most nurses make in a month!” a TikToker who goes by the handle @quetheultrapreneur wrote in a post.
Strike nurses can make more than regular staff, which makes the opportunity intriguing for some.
“It’s also a lucrative career, especially in the field of nursing. The base pay will depend on the specialty, but strike pay is usually the highest in the field,” Christine Kingsley, an advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) and the health and wellness director of the Lung Institute told In The Know by Yahoo. “Strike nurses also get bonuses throughout a week of work and meal stipends.”
Other strike nurses who’ve also been open about their jobs on TikTok have shared how much they’ve made in these positions.
“I was paid $2,500 just for the completion of modules,” Kayce Maraj (@thebougienurse) said.
On top of the potential earning power for strike nurses, there are other alleged benefits of the profession.
“On the face side of the coin, strike nursing offers flexibility because it’s a role that temporarily fills the position of nurses who go on strike,” Kingsley said. “Strike nurses generally help increase the number of full-time nurses who attend the strike. This can put more pressure on the employers to come up with a better settlement for the nurses.”
Even with the positives laid out, many people remain on the opposite side of Bustamante.
“Solidarity forever,” commented @aaronabubo under Bustamante’s post.
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The post TikTokers upset after woman posts ‘day in the life’ video glamorizing being a strike nurse: ‘This could not suck more’ appeared first on In The Know.
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