Home » Press Room » Archived Press Releases » Press Releases 2001 » Sisters of Mercy Health Break Faith with RN's(8/16
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 16, 2001

Sisters of Mercy Health System Breaks Faith With Nurses
21 Months of Negotiations Fail To Yield a Fair Contract at St. John's Mercy Medical Center

Nurses Gather for "Silent Negotiations" on Friday, August 17, 2001
1-2 p.m.
12140 Woodcrest Executive Drive (270 & Olive)
St. Louis (Creve Coeur), Mo.

Nurses at St. John's Mercy Medical Center in St. Louis are committed to reaching a fair contract that will build a partnership for quality care at St. John's Mercy Medical Center. The 1,500 registered nurses are seeking a voice to promote the values of professionalism and quality care.

Negotiations are scheduled from 2-5 p.m. on Friday. The registered nurses will stand in silence on Friday to symbolize the lack of a contract after 25 months of negotiations. They hope that their silent presence will heighten public awareness for the need for an enhanced commitment from both sides to reach a fair contract based on common values of dignity, justice, service, excellence and stewardship.

The nurses are calling on the Sisters of Mercy Health System to negotiate fairly and expediently.

  • The nurses deserve a voice on the job and greater involvement in decisions affecting their lives and the lives of their patients.
  • Study after study has shown a strong relationship between nurse staffing levels and the quality of patient care.
The RNs sought representation with the UFCW because of their concerns for patient care after the hospital instituted a new program that, according to the nurses, began stressing profit more than care. The nurses remain concerned that the hospital continues to pay more attention to the bottom line than to quality patient care. When St. John's RNs voted to join UFCW Local 655's Professional Division on July 17, 1999, they became the first union hospital in St. Louis and the first registered nurse unit in Mo.

The UFCW represents 1.4 million workers, including more than 100,000 health care workers.

United Food and Commercial Workers Union: A Voice for Working America- www.ufcw.org
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