What's Really at Stake with this CNA/SEIU Controversy

SEIU — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 19:35:43 EDT

Hey, this is Nadia. I'm an SEIU staffer. Not sure how much this Ohio organizing debate is on the radar for folks who don't work for a union, but with the Labor Notes conference here this weekend, it's now local. Anyways, wanted to provide some context...

By now you may feel like you’ve heard quite enough of the back-and-forth between SEIU and the CNA over union representation of nurses and healthcare workers in Ohio. You may have also heard that the dispute runs deep and wide and goes back years and across state lines into Nevada, California, Texas and several others, and that the encounters have become more extreme.

And perhaps you’re wondering—why should I care?

If this were just about CNA and SEIU, or even just about a dispute at an isolated hospital in one state, you could move on. The thing is, these struggles are not taking place in a vacuum—and what becomes of them has far-reaching impact that touches us all. At a time when the economy is bad and getting worse, and the number of workers represented by a union in this country is an anemic 12%, labor unions face a choice…and workers everywhere face the consequences.

Unions can fight for turf within the ever-shrinking pool of unionized workers, or we can get back on the offensive by reaching out to help more workers join unions to strengthen the hand of more working families.

Corporate Raider’s Plan to Buy Michigan Homes Puts Seniors at Risk

SEIU Healthcare Michigan — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 16:52:09 EST

(Important Action Alert for You Below)

Corporate raiders are turning their profiteers' gaze on our nation's nursing homes - and Michigan families should be very worried.

Recently, the investment giant Carlyle Group set its sights on buying HCR Manor Care Inc., which owns 28 nursing homes with 3,300 nursing beds in Michigan.

Carlyle is worth $75 billion and, as one of the world's most powerful private equity firms, has a diverse portfolio that includes interests in the military-industrial complex as well as holdings in Dunkin' Donuts and Hertz Rental Cars.

Now Carlyle wants to add Michigan's nursing homes to its portfolio of assets to maximize its profits - without making any commitment to improving health care.

SEIU Healthcare Michigan is partnering with citizens, healthcare providers, elected officials, businesses and countless others to ensure that our seniors aren't put at risk while private equity firms like Carlyle rake in massive profits - much of it public Medicare and Medicaid dollars - while ignoring patient needs.

If the national trend is any indication, we all have good reason to be alarmed.

In a stunning front-page expose on Sept. 23, 2007, a New York Times investigation found that large private equity firms that bought nursing homes across the country between 2000 and 2006 slashed the number of registered nurses far below levels required by law, experienced higher numbers of patient care violations and more deaths. In comparison, during the same period, homes that were not owned by such firms maintained or even expanded staffing levels and had better track records.

The NYT report also showed that private equity firms buy homes and strip them quickly for profit. At the same time, these firms insulate their new acquisitions behind complex layers of corporate ownership to thwart families from holding them accountable for the death or injury of a loved one.

The bottom line for these equity firms is that Michigan's nursing homes are acquisitions, to be bought and sold for maximum profit. The care and well-being of the elderly and often ailing men and women who live there is just collateral.

The horror stories are heart-breaking, as evidenced in the NYT report...

Posts with the tag SEIU

What's Really at Stake with this CNA/SEIU Controversy

Corporate Raider’s Plan to Buy Michigan Homes Puts Seniors at Risk