Akron General nurses on verge of strike amid contract dispute
AKRON, Ohio (WJW) – Nurses at the Cleveland Clinic Akron General Hospital are on the verge of picking up signs of protest to walk the picket lines in hopes of earning a new contract that secures better staffing, among other concerns.
“The strike is more related to our proposal for safe staffing rather than wages,” Professional Staff Nurses Association Co-Chair Linzi Lentz said. “Wages does tie into safe staffing because we feel that if we have more competitive wages and benefits, that we can attract more nurses. So, getting more nurses to come work for us. So, it’s a recruitment and retention tool, but really, it’s safe staffing. That is our biggest concern.”
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Lentz is a RN in the intensive care unit at Akron General. She explained that over the last few years nurses have dealt with an increase of patients dating back to the pandemic, and since the patient load has not returned to normal levels. She said this is not only a problem that causes burnout but also poor care for patients.
“I would say we have definitely seen a staffing shortage that started even before the pandemic, which of course was made worse during the pandemic,” Lentz said. “And we’ve just never really fully recovered.”
Lentz said ICU nurses typically have up to two patients because they require more acute care, but medical surge floor nurses are the ones being overloaded.
“In our hospital our nurses are taking anywhere from five all the way up to eight patient assignments,” she said. “We have looked at research that shows that for every patient above a four-patient assignment on a med surge floor the mortality rate increases by seven percent.”
Legislation is being introduced in the Ohio Statehouse through House Bill 285, which aims to require hospitals to establish mandatory staffing plans. Within it recommends a max of four patients for every one nurse. The bill is currently in House Committee.
Two more sticking points in negotiation include maternity leave and retirement. Lentz said there is hope more negotiations will happen early next week, but if no deal is struck nurses will begin to picket on Wednesday until at least Friday to spotlight their contract demands.
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“So, with picketing, this is not a work stoppage,” Lentz said. “We are not pulling nurses from the bedside. We recognize that we really need to stay at the bedside, if at all possible. So those picketing would just be our way of getting out and getting the information to the public without disrupting patient care.”
The Cleveland Clinic released a statement on the pending strike saying they’re negotiating in good faith:
“Our goal is to achieve a mutually agreeable contract renewal, as we have in past years. Akron General greatly appreciates the care provided by all caregivers, including those in the bargaining unit, at the hospital.”
Lentz said the Cleveland Clinic is such a reputable name that its decision-making impacts other hospitals across the state and country. So, she’s hopeful that it will set a new contract standard, especially for staffing.
“Really, our goal is to get a fair contract and get it before we would get to a point where we would even have to picket or go on strike for sure,” Lentz said.
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