The following is a statement from Sal Rosselli, president emeritus of the National Union of Healthcare Workers, in response to Rogers Behavioral Health CEO Cindy Meyer’s statement about mediation in the dispute between Rogers and its unionized workers.
Rogers Behavioral Health CEO Cindy Meyer issued a misleading statement today that appears to be intended to draw attention away from a protest workers are holding this evening outside Rogers’ “Celebrate the Light Gala” in downtown Milwaukee. The potential mediation that has been discussed for over a month would not be to settle contracts for Rogers workers who formed unions earlier this year in West Allis and Madison; it would be to settle the ongoing complaints Rogers faces from the National Labor Relations Board over its illegal actions, including firing six pro-union workers and filing unfounded complaints against two of them with their licensing boards. As of now, Rogers is still refusing to begin contract negotiations in Madison and still refusing to recognize the union election in West Allis, both of which took place in April.
Workers have always been open to mediation or any reasonable settlement that will result in Rogers following federal labor law and bargaining contracts in good faith, rather than spending additional patient care dollars on lawyers when its treatment centers remain seriously understaffed. Rogers agreed last month to pursue mediation as well, but no formal date has been set, and the earliest date Rogers officials have said they would be available is in February. Workers and their allies are proceeding with this evening’s protest, starting at 5:15 p.m. outside the Pfister Hotel to shine a light on Rogers’ ongoing violation of their rights under federal law and the organization’s lowering of patient care standards, which spurred workers to unionize.
